Ruby Mae Has Something to Say

Small's ( Imogene's Antlers ) keen sense of fun and comic flair infiltrate both the text and the cartoony pictures that tell this winning story of Ruby Mae Foote, whose Texas home is the World Headquarters for Universal Peace and Understanding. Because the speech of this tongue-tied, engagingly disheveled woman often sounds like gibberish, it seems unlikely that she will ever fulfill her dream of delivering a message of peace at the United Nations. But her nephew, Billy Bob, wires some kitchen utensils onto an old colander, thus creating the ``Bobatron''--a hat-like device that enables Ruby Mae to speak articulately and intelligently. Billy Bob comes to his aunt's rescue when a bird flies off with her Bobatron, and Ruby Mae at last gets her chance to share her important message with the world. Even the youngest readers will benefit from the wisdom of Ruby Mae's simple declaration, and they will be highly amused by the goings-on leading up to it. Ages 4-9. (Aug . )