THE WILD BABY

A frisky, light-footed rhyme from Sweden about wild baby Ben and the mother who loves him steadfastly through all his escapades. In one, ""He crept into her room one night,/she snored and didn't hear,/and softly as the slyest cat/he climbed the chandelier./He dangled there until it broke,/then hurried out as Mama woke."" Ben also disappears at every chance--from his bed, from his home, and from a clearing in the woods--and each time, Mama welcomes him back with smiles and hugs. Eriksson, who seems to be getting as big a kick out of the mischief as Ben is, gives Mama a bedraggled rustic look, makes the hyperkinetic Ben a lovably funny-looking tad, and keeps the pictures moving with impish energy.