ALL THE BETTER TO SEE YOU WITH!
by Margaret Wild & illustrated by Pat Reynolds
An especially warmhearted, well-fashioned story about getting glasses. Kate is the only quiet child in her rambunctious family of five kids, but she still gets quality time—especially with her mother in a special game: a benign version of Red Riding Hood's exchange with the wolf (``What a big, smiley mouth...'' ``All the better to kiss you with...''). Kate gets along, never knowing that the fuzzy images she sees are unusual, till one day at the beach when she can't find her nearby family. Her parents promptly take action, and Kate is delighted with her new glasses. Reynolds's attractive watercolor illustrations include several blurred scenes, without the defining black lines she uses elsewhere, to show how things look to Kate; commendably (and in accordance with her gentle character), there's no hint here that Kate's specs are anything but a welcome revelation. (Picture book. 5-8)