JUNGLE GYM JITTERS

Equal parts Chris Van Allsburg, Arthur Geisert, and M.C. Escher, the stunningly accomplished art in this tale of a height-sensitive lad facing a truly gonzo jungle gym makes for a riveting read. As Jerry looks on with increasing unease, his inspired father George builds and rebuilds a construct in the backyard that begins with a few pieces of scrap lumber, but ends in an immense, swirling maze of hoops, wires, poles, tires, looping slides, and gadgets that tower impossibly into the sky. And in Richards’s maniacally detailed, tinted-pencil drawings, it’s festooned with dozens of tiny but individually distinct neighborhood children, borrowed zoo animals, and sight gags. Ultimately, Jerry snatches triumph from near disaster when the overgrown plaything catches fire during a town-wide jungle party and he has to nerve himself to rescue his little sister from a high perch. The rhymed text is nothing special, but children will pore delightedly over the teeming artwork. The playful, plainly competent George makes a refreshing change of pace from the way dads are usually portrayed. (Picture book. 6-9)