THE MERRYMAKER

Father's mitzvah brings warmth into his poor house when the stranger he invites to share a single herring turns out to be a badchen, an itinerant rhymster who entertains at weddings. The badchen, Naftoli Boimel from Betchootch, amazes little Shloimeh with his impromptu thank yous--""Birds to the nest,/ Cows to the stable,/ I'll be a guest/ At your table,"" but it takes a more substantial talent to impress Mother--the ability to cadge three weeks' worth of fish and chaleh from the town's most prominent prospective in-laws. Soft focus, brown toned illustrations underline the gentleness of this well made variation on a familiar Yiddish theme. Handsomely produced.