HENRY'S BABY
by Mary Hoffman & illustrated by Susan Winter
Henry yearns to be one of a group of boys who seem to be special: Skif is ``trendy''; ``The Prof [is] a computer-head''; ``Zip'' is a whiz at sports; Jake is really tough. All Henry has is a baby, which he considers an embarrassment. In the natural course of things, he does make friends with the admired group and visits their homes. When he finally invites them to his house, he makes sure little George will be elsewhere, but suddenly Mom has to rush off and leave George with his big brother. Not surprisingly, the others promptly fall for the baby, and are soon involved in feeding and playing with him and planning his education. Winter's enchanting pictures of the cherubic George (and the not-so-very-tough big boys) do a lot to explain this predictable but eminently satisfying denouement, while Hoffman (Amazing Grace, 1991) once again dramatizes young schoolchildren's concerns with gentle humor and sagacity. (Picture book. 5-9)