They cannot read by themselves, and some have difficulty even standing. But on certain mornings each month, they can be found in the library, learning the value of good books.

All under the age of 2, these are the youngest members of the Catonsville and Howard County central libraries.

Two to four mornings a month, they arrive eager to listen to new books and to clap and dance along with new songs. Whether accompanied by mothers, fathers or nannies, these children come ready to enjoy learning at the local library.

Cheryl Evans, librarian and programming coordinator for the Catonsville library, spends two mornings a month with the children who attend her Little Wonders program. Evans created the program 18 months ago, based on research on early childhood development and on her observations of children in library settings.

Evans says she was "amazed" at her program's immediate success. The children surprised her by "their levels of concentration, and their participation" in the stories, songs and interactive play.

Word of Evans' program spread quickly, and she has trained other librarians in the art of bringing reading alive for infants and toddlers. The program has spread to the Arbutus, Cockeysville, Perry Hall and White Marsh branches of the Baltimore County library system.

While enrollment in Little Wonders is on a first-come, first-served basis, Evans was recently persuaded to hold an "invitation only" session for a group of mothers and their infants who had met through the Mothercare program at the Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC).

GBMC group member Carol Norton brought her 17-month-old son, Reese.

"We are all trying to be the best parents we can be," Norton says, "and we are trying to expose our children to as much as we possibly can that will help with their development."

Exposing the children to the library "opens up a new world" where they can see stories come alive, she says.

A teacher of German and Spanish, Lori Ginley routinely reads bedtime stories in German to her 13-month-old son, Andrew, and plays tapes of German nursery rhymes.

"Children can pick up languages at an early age," Ginley says. She notes that Evans "brings her expertise in language to the program, and that is important to me."

For Anuradha Mookerjee, a native of India, the program plays a cultural role for her 9-month-old son, Neil. Mookerjee notes that in her culture, "storytelling is traditionally done by the grandparents," something Neil misses out on by living in Owings Mills. Remembering how much her son enjoyed being read to when his grandfather visited from India, Mookerjee views Little Wonders as an opportunity to have Neil learn to appreciate the art of storytelling.

Linda Wood, who grew up in England, says she values Little Wonders as a learning experience for 15-month-old Anna and for herself. While Anna makes friends and listens to Evans' stories and songs, Wood is "learning about books I hadn't thought of getting yet, and getting new ideas to share with Anna." The library, Wood adds, "is accessible, child-friendly and offers a great way to meet other mothers of young children."

The Play Partners program at Howard County central library has been equally successful with the under-2 crowd. Librarian Georgianna Price says the program began six months ago because so many parents were bringing their babies to the story times for their older children.

Each Play Partners group meets weekly for four weeks. The main purpose of the program, Price says, is "to introduce parents to the resources in our library, and to give the babies a good experience so they will want to continue coming here when they are older."

That plan is working for 17-month-old Robert Corrigan. His mother, Hope, has been bringing him to the library regularly since he was 6 months old.

Thanks to library programs like Play Partners, Corrigan says, she has seen Robert display preferences for certain types of books and, she says, "It seems like he can pay attention longer to books I read to him at home."

Mike Hebert of Burtonsville wants to expose his 15-month-old daughter to more books than "just the supply we have at home, that she has been through hundreds of times." The library, with its many books, "will let Sara know that reading is important to everybody," he says.

Evans and Price emphasize that their under-2 reading programs serve an important function for children and parents alike. And, they say, it has been easy to see that the programs work.

"Just look at the children -- they're happy," says Evans. That, she adds, "is the true sign of success."