A RIDE ON MOTHER'S BACK

In a work subtitled ``A Day of Baby Carrying Around the World,'' the Bernhards (The Way of the Willow Branch, p. 370, etc.) demonstrate the universal methods for keeping babies safe while people work and play. A West African baby sleeps on his mother's back while she fetches water; an Inuit baby nestles in the hood of his mother's parka as she fishes through the ice; a Peruvian baby rides in a shawl on her mother's back while the mother herds sheep in the Andes. The Bernhards visit 12 diverse cultures, examining the work of the adults from the point of view of small children who are along for the ride. This is an exquisite book, for the detailed, folk-art style gouache illustrations, its overall design, and the wealth of information it includes. World maps show the location of each featured parent and baby, who are discussed in a cultural context, with one full-page illustration and one attractive, bordered page of text. Many preschoolers won't sit still for all the facts, but they will love the pictures of babies sleeping, watching, participating; older children will find the information compelling and can locate more details in notes at the back. (Picture book. 2-6)