THE MERRY STARLINGS

Forty-four starlings,/Forty-four darlings,/Merry and happy,/Together kept house."" That's the ickiest; for the rest, Marshak's text is brisk and to-the-point (a little reminiscent of The Country Bunny too). ""One swept the chimney,/One cleaned the windows,/ One washed the dishes,/One scrubbed the floor.//One cooked the dinner,/One did the shopping,/One tan on errands,/And one shut the door."" And when the 44 starlings leave home, the habit of doing different things goes with them--so we find them going by trolley and bus and sleigh; sleeping on the hearthrug, the sofa, the floor; singing twitter-twitter, tritty-litty, too-too-lay. Sharply drawn illustrations give the busy starlings a Leslie Brooke aplomb. There's satisfaction to be had in repeated looking, as well as play-potential for a read-aloud group.