HENRY AND BEEZUS

More Henry Huggins and just as good or better. A minor classic of a today's Tom Sawyer in third grade adventures that might be true about a boy that might be true. Henry's latest goal is a shiny new bike, a duplicate of one owned by that enviable neighbor, Scooter. He saves a minute sum from the sale to school chums of a board of bubble gum, and- with the help of his friend Beatrice, "Beezus" Quimby's staunch aid, he secures an old bike at a police station auction. Sad to say, it turns out to be a girl's bicycle and almost beyond repair, and Henry and Beezus suffer major indignities in a minor's world before the super duper model is realized. This for our money is infinitely preferable to the somewhat sticky fantasy of some of today's juveniles. There's the kind of adventure with which any small boy could identify himself; there's humor and a basic understanding of children. Louis Darling's pen and inks capture action and gesture with authentic humor.