TIMOTHY COX WILL NOT CHANGE HIS SOCKS

Kinerk (Clorinda ) introduces Timothy Cox who, when he gets an idea, as he tells his faithful dog, he "follows it through! " Unfortunately for Walt the pooch, the boy's parents, schoolmates and neighbors, Timothy's latest project us to see what will happen if he doesn't change his socks for a whole month. Early on he receives a registered letter: "Timothy, Timothy, Timothy Cox,/ won't you consider, please, changing your socks?" to which he blithely responds to his dog, "And it's only day three." But as the stench level rises, Principal Plum dismisses Timothy from school, neighbors post signs and the Board of Health calls his parents. With the whole town in an uproar, and even a friendly skunk parting ways with the protagonist, Timothy resolutely completes his experiment. In an odd turn of events, the school honors his perseverance by placing his infamous socks in the trophy case (which seems to wither with the smell). Those who enjoy an odiferous yarn may not mind the overabundance of text and strident rhyming couplets; but even Gammel's exuberant illustrations, teeming with his trademark snub-nosed, floppy-eared, flying-haired characters and jubilant paint splatters seem to run out of steam by story's end. Ages 5-9. (May)