A WAS ONCE AN APPLE PIE
by Edward Lear & illustrated by Julie Lacome
``K was once a little kite,/ Kity/ Whity/ Flighty/ Kity/ Out of sighty/ Little kite''—such is Lear's amusingly nonsensical pattern for each of the 26 letters. Lacome's bright, sophisticated colors, torn paper collages, and ample use of crisp white space make an attractive setting for the familiar verse; she extends neither the meaning nor the humor, but her cheerful depiction of the things mentioned, in a style ``influenced by her studies of American folk and craft design,'' are nicely designed. (Picture book. 2-7)