Magic Ark Rlb

Mr. Antrobus wears a top hat and frock coat. He lives next door to a boy who has been trying to get to his neighbor's yard for some time and see the Noah's Ark, where Mr. Antrobus keeps his wooden animals. On the boy's sixth birthday, Mr. Antrobus offers him a ladder for a present. The boy discovers that it floats, but he's not surprised, for he has seen his neighbor pass over the garden gate in the ark. One day, the boy rides with him and witnesses how he carries his animals to the far edge of the world so that they can roam freely. Price-Thomas's watercolors are exquisite; in contrast to their aura of unreality, his sculptured animals have a three-dimensional solidity. Although this story is the product of a potent imagination, it remains shrouded in poetic haze; and while the author attempts to draw conclusions to the wise, the boy's questionsand those of readersremain unanswered. A book with much to offer is really just another pretty sight. Ages 4-8. (October)