More opposites /

These 34 whimsical ditties, like those in Wilbur's Opposites, are built around synonyms and antonyms, mostly the latter (``The opposite of stop is go / But sometimes one does both, you know''). Each poem is accompanied by a jaunty, mischievous line drawing by Wilbur. One verse explains how to address a letter to a duck or a drake; another reveals why Missouri, home of skeptical, doubting folk, is the opposite of California, the starry-eyed residents of which ``think, I'm told, that every river's full of gold.'' The ambivalent opposite of baby, as one illustration shows, is a balding grown-up with thumb in mouth--making the point that adults are not so different from children after all. Many of the verses try one's patience with their arch, self-conscious humor; others have the gimlet wit and subtle wordplay of Wilbur's finest translations (``The best thing's to avoid excess. Try to be moderate, more or less''). (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Gr 3-6-- A sequel to Opposites (HBJ, 1973), featuring 34 more poems that explore words that, with the right outlook, might be considered opposites. There is inspired nonsense (``Ships would think it sappy/ To send us word that they are happy./ If you hear nothing from a liner,/ It means that things could not be finer.''), clever wordplay, and unforced humor in the tradition of Edward Lear. Each entry is accompanied by black-and-white pen drawings that extend the comedy. A book that's more than worth its weight in thoughtful amusement. --Kathleen Whalin, Belfast Public Library, ME (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.