Finger Rhymes
compiled by Marc Brown; illus. by the compiler
Preschool, Primary     Dutton/Unicorn     32 pp.
1980     0-525-29732-4     $8.95

Fourteen familiar finger rhymes, one to a page, are accompanied by black-and-white line drawings shaded with gray, old-fashioned in detail but contemporary in style. At the head of each appropriate line of text, directions for finger actions are given in tiny, precise drawings enclosed in boxes. That such clear instructions can be conveyed in such small spaced, without words, is surprising. The visual instructions are integrated with the text and do not interrupt the illustrations — a nice bit of design that allows each page to work as an illustrated poem without reference to hand motions. Most of the rhymes are to be found in other, larger collections; but they appear here in a format decidedly appealing to young children. DUDLEY B. CARLSON