for reading aloud. I soar / and fly, but have no wing / I dip / and dive / from a trail / of string. Children will enjoy the simple rhythmic poetry as much as the word puzzles in these clever riddles in verse. Each poem is set within a bright, colorful illustration full of clues (including jumbled letters), and it's hard to focus on the elusive poetic images with so much going on in the pictures. What will work best is reading each poem aloud and talking about it, then sharing the illustration and seeing how the picture helps answer the riddle and extend the words.

"With just one coin I / tumble out / from a round glass world / through a silver / spout." Twenty-nine playful poems describe ordinary but interesting objects, from a gumball to a snake. The riddle-poems, enjoyable to read aloud and to guess, are framed by partial illustrations of the answer and by scrambled letters that provide a further clue if needed.

Gr 3-6-Dotlich presents 29 short, descriptive, rhyming poems about everyday ideas and objects such as a telephone, soup, fireworks, a hula hoop, and an octopus, ending with a poet. Readers must guess what each poem is about and are helped by the realistic pictures that provide a two-inch border around each one. In addition to the riddle element, each picture also contains jumbled alphabet letters that spell out the poem's subject. Several of the entries are not obvious but the illustrations do help readers to ponder the solutions. If all else fails, the answers appear in fine print at the bottom of the copyright page. Children will enjoy these riddle poems either one-on-one or in a group setting.- Cathie Reed, The Montessori School, Lutherville, MD Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.