WILLY AND HUGH

The appealing Willy the Wimp (1984) is back, still a left- out little chimp in a world of sturdy gorillas—at least until he literally runs into huge Hugh. Both apologize politely, and soon become fast friends. Hugh faces down the bullies who like to torment Willy; Willy saves Hugh from a spider. The outline is familiar, but Browne's deftly limned art caricaturing people as apes speaks volumes; the friends gazing anxiously through the bars at humans on view at the zoo, and a scene at the library— where Willy reads to Hugh while elderly patrons glare—are priceless. A treat. (Picture book. 4-8)