MOUNTAIN BOBCAT

In the vein of Rutherford Montgomery's Wapiti the Elk, this is a life portrait of Battle, a Southern Appalachian wildcat. Story telling carefully observant of nature and wildlife takes Battle through cub-hood, a brief capture by farmers and a narrow escape from their dogs, a fight with a raccoon, some weeks of tailing and being tailed by a panther, his first and second mates. But somehow, in spite of its accuracy and momentary suspense, Battle's life contains too much of the episodic for emotional appeal.