NO PLAIN PETS!
by Marc Ian Barasch & illustrated by Henrik Drescher
A boy who has been promised a pet wants something unusual- -like ``A big, black gorilla? He wouldn't be rude—except, sometimes, when eating his food.'' As the mildly imaginative suggestions proceed, Drescher's wildly surreal illustrations take flight with mischievous creatures peering from windows (and the mouths of other creatures), hair typically on end, and surfaces patterned or scribbled with childlike graffiti (including the text). Meanwhile, the artist creates a gallery of amusingly zany figures and skillfully deploys his gorgeous colors. Bizarre but witty. (Picture book. 4-8)