BERNARD

Poor Bernard! His home is breaking up and the original bitter quarrel has now become a dispute over whether Bernard will live with the man or the woman. Unable to choose between them, Bernard runs away. When he's found, the frantic couple realize their mistake and agree--not to reconcile, that would be unrealistic, but to work out a way to share Bernard. ""And however we decide will be--must be--what is best for Bernard."" Topical therapeutics unworthy of Waber? It would be, except that Bernard is not a child but a dog, the pet of the splitting couple. With this small switch Waber makes it an amusing story, filling the interval between lost and found with Bernard's beguiling attempts to adopt another family. As these involve him in playground games, a parade, a van burglary, and lots of feedings, there's no sense here of a drab, doctor-ordered scenario.