A Mammoth Imagination

In his debut, The Carrot War , Norman pitted antagonistic rabbits against one another in a battle for their favorite food; this time, he reverses that premise by making ordinarily menacing creatures seem cuddly. Here, wild boars romp in a dense forest complete with caverns and gigantic trees. Exhibiting a certain Old World cultivation, these leisurely behaved boars harvest mushrooms, uncork bottles of vino and dine al fresco around a long wooden table. While the adults feast, Bonbon, a young boar, plays in the woods. He insists he's seen mammoths there, but everyone knows mammoths are extinct. Undeterred, Bonbon follows some huge, round tracks one day, and actually meets a friendly herd of the shaggy beasts. Soaring trees and snowy clearings dominate each spread, and the characters appear tiny in comparison to their surroundings; Bonbon and the mammoths look soft and furry, like so many stuffed toys. Norman's gentle tale generates feelings of anticipation, adroitly tuning in to children's fantasies of meeting some fantastic, benevolent creature deep in the wilderness. Ages 4-8. (Dec.)