CLOWNING AROUND

Inspired by her child's manipulation of magnetic letters on a refrigerator, Falwell devises an entertainment to rival the imaginative quality of MacDonald's Alphabatics (1986). After he drops the seven bold, black letters in ``clowning,'' a juggler clown experiments with new patterns. Two of the letters spell ``go,'' and so he does—in a circus-style ``car,'' with extra letters in its trunk. As the clown rearranges the letters, the car is transformed into a ``dog,'' which becomes a ``doll,'' and so on—until the reconstructed car takes him to a happy, applauding ``crowd.'' The clever development of the idea is delightful and consistent throughout. A grand book for any young child, from babies fascinated by the crisp, bright graphics to beginning readers, who will be entranced by the little man's earnest, good-humored antics with simple words. (Picture book. 0- 7)