Explore the vast range of titles available.

Some of these children of alcoholics may go on to develop drinking problems of their own because they unwittingly imitate the drinking habits of their alcoholic parent, or, as some researchers believe, because they have a genetic predisposition to alcoholism. (An estimated 50 to 60 percent of all alcoholics have at least one alcoholic parent.) Three years ago her father, who lives on the East Coast, became so illfrom the effects of alcohol that his family persuaded him to go to Alcoholics Anonymous, an organization for alcoholics seeking to recover. He stopped drinking, and a year later he came to California to visit [Brooks]. It was the first time she had seen him sober, and she was so amazed by the change in him, and curious to see how it had happened, that she accompanied him to an AA meeting. There, she acknowledged for the first time that she, too, was an alcoholic. With professional help, the aid of Alateen, or even the listening ear and support of a close friend or relative, children of alcoholics can eventually forget the pain and turmoil of their youth and get on with their lives, psychologist [Judith Seixas] says. An objective listener not only can provide support and comfort, but also can help the child realize that the alcoholism is beyond his or her control.

Searching in vain for a book suitable for kids, she finally called Greenwillow Books, a leading publisher of children's books. The publisher knew of no such book -- and suggested [Judith Seixas] write it herself. It took several years -- Seixas is the first to admit she does not possess remarkable literary gifts -- but the final result was Alcohol: What It Is, What It Does.

It seems to me that the couches are full of people whose parents were or weren't alcoholics, all trying to get a handle on why they behave the way they do instead of setting the reasons aside and looking for a way out through growth and change. Neither [Judith S. Seixas] nor [Geraldine Youcha] is the adult child of an alcoholic (there are an estimated 22 million to 30 million of those in America) or an alcoholic; one is a counselor and the other (Youcha) a writer. They hasten to point out that they don't have to be.

''Children of Alcoholism: A Survivor's Manual,'' published last month by Crown, was written by Judith S. Seixas, an alcoholism counselor who lives in Hastings-on-Hudson, and Geraldine Youcha, a journalist living in New City, N.Y. Mrs. Seixas is the author of several books for young people, including ''Alcohol: What It Is, What It Does'' and ''Living With a Parent Who Drinks Too Much.'' Mrs. Youcha is the author of ''A Dangerous Pleasure: Alcohol From the Woman's Perspective.'' Much of the research for the book is based on Mrs. Seixas's work running groups for adult children of alcoholics at the Levitan Family Institute, a treatment center in Massachusetts. ''That's when I got hooked,'' Mrs. Seixas said, describing ''the flood'' of responses when the group-therapy program was first announced. ''Most of the people in the groups were women in their 30's, 40's and 50's who did not know where their troubles came from,'' Mrs. Seixas said. One chapter in the book called ''Merry Christmas and Other Disasters,'' is particularly based on that group's experience. ''We started the group in the fall, and everyone went berserk, worrying about the upcoming holidays,'' Mrs. Seixas recalled. ''Everyone had memories of disasters during all the previous holidays.''

The traditional folk songs and unusual selection of yarns were collected by the children's book editor [Ann Durell] from various American regions and ethnic groups. The songs range from zippy (''Buffalo Gal,'' ''Yankee Doodle,'' ''Clementine,'' ''I've Been Working on the Railroad'') to melancholy (''On Top of Old Smokey,'' ''Swing Low, Sweet Chariot'') and sweet (''Billy Boy''). Ms. [DIANE GOODE] translates the pulse and mood of each into witty illustrations. The stories include the somewhat familiar (''Davy Crockett Meets His Match'' and ''Good or Bad?''), the not so familiar (''The Three Girls With the Journey-Cakes,'' ''The Talking Mule''), the humorous (''The Greedy Wife,'' ''The Twist-Mouth Family,'' ''The Knee-High Man''), the animal fable (''The Coyote and the Bear'') and the shivery ghost tale (''Wait Till Martin Comes'').