ANT PLAYS BEAR

An enchanting companion to My Brother Ant (1996). Little brother Anthony, known as Ant, wants his big brother—the narrator—to be a bear. The narrator plays the part so well that Ant becomes a little worried, and decides to end the game. In the second story, Ant wants to be a dog when his brother's new friend comes to visit, but becomes a boy when he finds out that the friend is capable of playing mean tricks on dogs. Third, Ant wants an explanation for the tap-tap-tapping on the bedroom window. Best of all, though, is the last story, in which Ant discovers what he wants to be when he grows up. In very short chapters, the love and exasperation common between siblings and the sweet thrill of everyday life are laid out for beginning readers who are sure to be delighted. The language is perfectly transparent, plain but full of feeling, and the illustrations, for all their artful simplicity, glow with universal appeal. Byars and Simont prove that within the closest of strictures—the easy-to-read format—brilliance can be achieved. (Fiction. 6-9)