IF ANYTHING EVER GOES WRONG AT THE ZOO

Every Saturday, Leslie makes an eponymous offer to one of the zookeepers: ``...you can send the zebras to my house.'' They promise to remember but aren't encouraging (``Oh, no...Monkeys...need things to swing on''). Then something does go wrong—heavy rains, flooding—and, one memorable night, the keepers bring the animals to Leslie's hilltop home, where they put the elephants in the garage, the monkeys on the swing-set, an alligator in the tub, ostriches in the hall—but just for the night. The keepers are grateful; Mom is surprised but polite: ``The next time you invite friends home, would you check with me first?'' It's a simple, enticing idea, gracefully and logically developed by this new author and ably abetted by Dyer's watercolors, which nicely capture the animals' appeal and the cozy, dependable family so willing to take them in. A real charmer. (Picture book. 4-8)