MY CRAYONS TALK

Reading about crayons will never rival actually coloring with them; nevertheless, here's a book of simple rhymes about what crayons ""say"" to a small girl: ""Brown sings, 'Play,/Mud-pie day./' Blue calls, 'Sky,/Swing so high.' ""It's a playful idea, executed with verses keyed to the lives of preschoolers. The two-liners--two or three words each--have little rhythm or imagery to recommend them, but like jump-rope rhymes, they will inspire chanting along. Karas's pictures depict comically fleshed-out stick-figures swinging in the clouds, confronting owls, and staring down ghosts.