BARNYARD BANTER

Each in their niche—hens in the henhouse, mice in the grain bin, and so on—the animals make their traditional exclamations as the barnyard goose careens through, chasing a bright yellow butterfly. Lush colors, startled, wide-eyed animals, and bold, black print make each page of this latest offering from a new Caldecott honoree (In the Small, Small Pond, 1993) jump with activity. Good for either group or lap reading; up close, you can really appreciate the texture Fleming creates in her specially handmade paper by incorporating such materials as coffee grounds and oats. Youngsters can responding to a repeated question (``Where's goose?''), and the familiar animal voices will please them; here, they can also enrich their vocabularies with such descriptives as ``wallow,'' ``paddock,'' and, of course, ``banter.'' (Picture book. 1-4)