Koko's Kitten

In The Education of Koko, an adult title, Patterson described her successful career as a teacher and caretaker of a female gorilla, Koko. Since 1972, the author and Koko have been communicating in sign language, mostly on subjects important to the big, surprisingly gentle animal. Before Koko's 12th birthday, she signed that she wanted ""Cereal there. Good there drink. Cat.'' Later she repeated, ``Cat. Cat. Cat.'' So Patterson brought a kitten to visit; Koko named him All Ball (he had no tail) and mothered the mite with the love visible in Cohn's wonderful color photos. They show vividly the humanlike relationship developing between the huge gorilla and her tiny baby. When All Ball is killed by a car and Koko signs ``Cry, sad, frown,'' and weeps, we know why the author cries too. It's gratifying to report that, in time, Koko expressed ``Good. Nice.'' Her new kitten had come to stay. (All ages)