THE WILD WOODS

As Jess and Grandpa make their way through the woods, they debate Jess's idea of taking a squirrel home. ``They're too wild,'' Grandpa says, but, still, Jess follows one over a gate, across a stream, and up the trunk of a fallen tree, pointing out that squirrels enjoy sandwiches and that one could sleep in her room. The real drama here is Grandpa's struggle to keep up with Jess, who's not quite as wild as the squirrel but just as active; cane in hand, he hops doggedly from rock to rock, pauses to wring out his socks, and finally catches up in time for the companionable walk home. A good-humored vignette with concise, appealingly realistic dialogue and deftly scribbled pen and watercolor illustrations, in the manner of James Stevenson, that nicely convey the large but friendly woods' attractions and the warm interaction between Grandpa and Jess. (Picture book. 3-7)