ALEXANDER AND THE WIND-UP MOUSE

It's the turn this very ordinary plot takes that makes all the difference: envying Willy the wind-up mouse bemuse he's loved not chased, Alexander arranges with the magic lizard to be transformed into a toy too—until Willy is discarded and Alexander, thinking fast, determines that the wind-up should become a real mouse instead. It's a happy solution but not one of Mr. Lionni's most felicitous picturizations: the two mice pale against textures and patterns that have nothing to do with their situation, the modest domestic drama being diminished rather than enhanced by the decor. Still, a little of Alexander and Willy is better than none.