THE WOLF WHO CRIED BOY

When a spoiled Little Wolf pooh-poohs his Lamburger and Sloppy Doe dinner, Father Wolf dreamily recalls a true delicacy. "There was a time when a clever wolf could snatch a shepherd boy off a hill," he muses, leaning back in his overstuffed easy chair. "Why, there was nothing better than a steaming plate of Boy Chops... and some Boys-n-Berry Pie." He and Mother Wolf promise to cook the first boy their finicky son can find. Thereafter, Little Wolf teases his nostalgic parents by yelling, "Boy! Boy!" for kicks. By the time Little Wolf spies a dozen plump Scouts hiking through the forest, his folks don't believe him anymore. Hartman (Bible Bad Guys) names many storybook meals, including Three-Pig Salad (with bricks, straw and sticks) and Granny Smith Pie, but never explains why boys are such an elusive quarry. Raglin (The Thirteen Days of Halloween) pictures the wolves as rustic homebodies in old-fashioned clothes, and Little Wolf as a prankster in short pants. His fine-line pen-and-ink illustrations, which have the dense crosshatching of woodcuts, seem immobile despite the keyed-up activity. This glib reversal of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" has its slapstick moments, but can't top Jan Fearnley's "Mr. Wolf" books for sinister hijinks. Ages 5-up. (May)