I GOT A FAMILY

A child describes her family of six—from Great-Gran to the cat—in engagingly informal compact verse: ``I got an Uncle, loves me wishin'./He's got a special place for fishin',/Says that he's shared it just with me!/Hunkerin' under his willow tree/Right where the riverbed meets the streams,/We bait our gear and cast our dreams.'' Each six-line verse deftly sketches a character and an entire relationship, neatly encapsulated in a key word at the end of the first line, whether it's ``Brother, loves me hard,/ roughhousin'...'' or ``Mamma, loves me sewin'/Keeps all the hems in my dresses growin'...Wraps me in comfort all year through.'' The whole family is beautifully summed up in a last verse, concluding: ``I got a heart that loves `em back!'' Gottlieb's bright, bold illustrations—a few broad, rough black lines define vibrant areas of solid color—make a classy complement to the freshness and power of Cooper's joyful imagery. (Picture book. 4-8)