cover image Crash, Bang, Boom

Crash, Bang, Boom

Peter Spier. Doubleday Books for Young Readers, $5.95 (26pp) ISBN 978-0-385-26569-0

With bass drum (``Bom! Bom! Bom!'') and blaring bugle (``Ta-terah!!''), it's a pleasure to herald the return of Caldecott Medalist Spier's exuberant--and perceptive--visualization of sounds. Now available in a large-sized board book, this appealing collection will provide parents and their children with plenty of interactive opportunity as they ``listen'' to such noisemakers as a a nerve-jangling jackhammer, an ominous thundercloud and a police car giving chase (sounding, appropriately enough, like ``You-You-You-You-You-You.''). Spier's bright and cheery illustrations are crammed full of details in this fun-filled follow-up to Gobble , Growl , Grunt . The book's spreads are organized into familiar areas and topics ranging from a kitchen with its busy blender and whistling teakettle to a jubilant musical finale. A robust, ho-ho-ho-ing Santa and fireworks bring this visual cacophony to a rousing close. Ages 3-6. (Mar.)