Smarty Marty's Got GameBy Amy Gutierrez; illustrated by Adam McCauley(Cameron + Company; 32 pages; $17.95; ages 4-8)The Giants very own in-game reporter learned to love baseball from her grandmother and now passes on that love in this pleasing, plausible and practical story. (Included are tips on how to record balls, strikes, singles, doubles, triples, home runs and the grand slam.) Naturally, Mikey becomes a fan and, in so doing, underscores the power of baseball to connect generations - past, present and future. Classic elements converge with a wicked Snow Queen a la Hans Christian Anderson, a mysterious museum with its sinister director, hidden keys, a powerful sword, scary creatures, sad ghost-girls, a long-imprisoned boy and a grieving girl, called upon to save him and the world. Proof positive comes in this large-sized anthology of 36 small-sized poems that celebrate the seasons, beginning with spring, cleverly captured thus: "Rain bears down, / roots stretch up. / They'll meet in a flower." (No easy task.) Sun-drenched acrylics offer hilarious caricatures and exaggerated detail to match this raucous yarn, spun of colorful stuff - an outlaw gang, galloping tortoises, a decorative rattlesnake, the town sheriff and a dear baker to feed the homely but hopeful grooms-in-waiting. Compost A Family Guide to Making Soil From ScrapsBy Ben Raskin(Roost Books; 48 pages; $16.95; ages 4 and up)What better way to celebrate Earth Day on April 22 than to make some new and nutritious earth?
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