We Got Brother Zoo CL

Tough little Mary Margaret Morrison supplies all sorts of wild explanations for her brother's origins, none of them flattering. He was a freebie at the zoo the day they were giving away wild animals; an alien from another planet, complete with ``shiny metal diapers, too!'' The girl's stories are interspersed with her longing for the ``good old days'' when her parents had lots of time just for her. Despite her resentment, the illustrations depict an attentive and loving family. The children's outsized heads and squiggly limbs resemble those of Nickelodeon's squat Rugrats. Aside from the comical figures, however, there's little visual interest in the watercolors, with their vast planes of pea-soup green. The brisk pace and Mary Margaret Morrison's angry comic shtick break down in an abrupt, unconvincing turning point. Mary Margaret Morrison ponders the possibility of her parents returning her irascible brother to the ``room full of wild babies'' (a tranquil hospital nursery), where he ``really'' came from, and she's suddenly protective: ``My brother's name is Irwin Jr., and we are going to keep him.'' It's as if the authors have tired of the joke, too, and simply abandon it via their heroine's sudden change of heart. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)