cover image Square, Triangle, Round, Skinny

Square, Triangle, Round, Skinny

Eugenia Radunsky. Henry Holt & Company, $19.95 (32pp) ISBN 978-0-8050-2205-6

Simply presented but ingeniously prepared, this set of concept books teaches children not just to recognize various shapes but to look for them as well. Made of brightly colored card stock diecut in the eponymous shape, each book is held together by a childproof metal stud, so that the reader rotates the pages instead of turning them. This technique reinforces the integrity of the circle or equilateral triangle, square or rectangle--no matter how it's turned, it looks the same. The various pages show objects that visually echo the targeted shape ( Triangle , for example, leads off with the ``letter A,'' which contains one triangle and suggests another). Those familiar with Vladimir Radunsky's Hail to Mail will recognize the elan of the hand-pressed, hand-colored linoprints and the whimsically lettered text. Lagniappe: a poster gathering images from all four books and highlighting the dachshund from Skinny (``My name is Minnie / My body is skinny / My ears are long / My spirit is strong''). All four books and poster conveniently rest inside a shallow cardboard box with a see-through lid. Ages 3-5. (Sept.)