OUR GRANNY
by Margaret Wild & illustrated by Julie Vivas
Another treasure from Wild/Vivas (The Very Best of Friends, etc.) ``Some grannies live in apartments...farmhouses...nursing homes or nowhere at all. Our granny lives with us,'' begins a cheerily irreverent comparison of a plump, affectionate, thoroughly individual family fixture with a plenitude of contrasting grannies (``Some grannies have thin legs...bristly chins...Our granny has a wobbly bottom''). Clothing; vocations and avocations; pets, friends, husbands; kissing techniques—the several creatively varied samples offer just the idiosyncracies that intrigue small children; but our granny, who ``wears a funny bathing suit,'' ``marches in demonstrations,'' ``does special exercises to make her bottom smaller,'' and ``always kisses us good night'' is clearly the best. And, slim or overflowing, Vivas's grannies are all delectably comical and rendered with a keen eye, a matchless sense of design, and a generous affection for all humanity. Sure to enliven a primary unit on families, or to launch a cozy bedtime chat. (Picture book. 4-7)