GRANDADDY'S PLACE

In a prequel to last year's lovely Georgia Music, Janetta's mother takes her for a first visit to Grandaddy, an overnight train ride away. Janetta has never been to the country, and is at first dismayed by Grandaddy's ram. shackle home and the various animals she finds outdoors. She begins to warm to him when he tells her a fantastical story about a star that came down and rode his mule (Momma protesting every word of the way); their friendship is confirmed on a fishing expedition, when Grandaddy answers Janetta's questions by checking with the fish (""Cook me with plenty of cornmeal,"" he reports it says) and Janetta replies in kind (""It says, 'Throw me back' ""). Feeling a lot more at home, she thinks about naming all Grandaddy's animals--a plan he greets with comfortable acceptance. Grandaddy's funny, understated wisdom should appeal to readers as much as it does to his lucky granddaughter. Stevenson augments the story with such details as a kerosene lantern, icebox, weedy yard and broken fence, as well as the feel of a warm night in rural Georgia and a family made one by love and mutual respect. His free, agile pen and gentle colors are just right for this beautifully told story of friendship between generations.