Leo and Emily's Zoo

In the fourth book about Leo and Emily, the enterprising pair decides to create a backyard zoo since they can't afford to visit a real one. A gratifying crowd queues up for opening day, but disaster threatens, for the animalsgoldfish, rabbits, newtshave gone into hiding. Dressed in makeshift animal costumes, the children's parents come to the rescue, filling in for the exhibits the zoo lacks. The neighbors leave convinced the show has been worth the price of admission, and the young entrepreneurs have raised enough money for a trip to the zoo. Once again Brandenberg provides sprightly humor and entertainmentqualities mirrored in Abolafia's loose, expressive watercolors. The only disappointment lies in the resolution: readers may wish that Leo and Emily's own resourcefulness (rather than their parents' rescue) had saved the day. But the fabulously silly sight of adults dressed as zoo animals is ample compensation. Ages 3-up. (August)