WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND

McGuire (Night Becomes Day, 1994, etc.) uses retro-style graphic illustrations to tell a circular tale. A small rag doll falls from an apartment building, then bounces from motorcycle to truck to box, which, while floating in the ocean, is retrieved by a ship. She travels around the world, only to reaffirm the book's title, by returning to the very apartment she came from. Readers can follow the doll's voyage on the mapped liner pages of the book. Her ``port of calls''Casablanca, Bombay, Shanghaicreate a nostalgic view of the world that reiterates the whole design of the book. This is not the troubled 1990s, but a territory of exotic adventure, reminiscent of the realms traversed by Curious George, Babar, and even Humphrey Bogart. The artist creates an exotic atmosphere, not by invoking the stereotypes and racism of other eras, but with a deft use of animals (elephants and snakes), and occupations (sultans and snake charmers). In fact, the book is at its best when stereotypes are juxtaposed with the unexpected: A veiled Arab woman shoots off an arrow that startles a camel the doll is riding. Good, simple fun on a grand, global scale. (Picture book. 5- 10)