WHO'S IN RABBIT'S HOUSE? A Masai Tale

Much ado among the animals, with an unseen monster occupying Rabbit's house and threatening everyone who comes near; with Rabbit herself intervening when the strong-arm eviction methods of Jackal, Leopard, Elephant, and Rhinoceros would destroy house and housebreaker alike; and with insignificant, overlooked Frog finally out-bluffing the fearful creature. . . who turns out to be ""only a caterpillar."" Like Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears, this is neither the most pregnant nor the most involving of illustrated African folk tales (nor is Aardema a rhythmic storyteller), though again like Mosquitoes. . . , it's crisp and commanding. The Dillons turn the characters into identically clad human players in animal masks, they allow the masks to change expressions (no less veracious than the masks themselves), and they make of the whole another artificial, but admittedly dazzling performance--more theatrical than dramatic.