FEAST FOR 10

The creator of Clowning Around (1991) brings her strong sense of design to a counting book in which numbers are skillfully dovetailed into a simple depiction of an African- American family going marketing and then, in a second count from one to ten, preparing and serving a meal. With Mother, four children scouting for groceries, ``five kinds of beans'' (including jelly beans), ``six bunches of greens,'' and ``ten hands to help''—including Mother's but not baby's—a nice bit reasoning is needed to work out the counts, and it all works out logically. Falwell uses crisp, bright, beautifully designed collages of fabric and paper silhouetted on white for her warm portrayal of this lively, well-organized family, quietly incorporating contemporary touches (a recycling bin; males helping out in the kitchen). Developed with imagination and care, an unusually attractive offering. (Picture book. 2-7)