COME A TIDE

Returning to the Appalachian setting of his illustrations for Rylant's The Relatives Game (Caldecott Honor, 1985), Gammell depicts irrepressible mountain folk coping with a flood after a torrential rain (""all the creeks rushed down to the river like kinfolks coming home""). Lyon's spare, poetic text conveys the excitement as neighbors rescue each other, as well as the humor of such idiosyncracies as a man who won't be saved until he finds his duck. But Gammell's marvelous illustrations steal the show--with his trademark rainbow colors streaked by the downpour; his people and creatures earthy and vibrant; and a fascinating debris of amusing details splashed across every page. Realistic enough to be instructive, inspiring in its characters' fortitude and good humor, and just plain fun.