ANIMAL GAMES
by Russell Freedman
"These young gorillas are playing follow the leader. . . Wrestling is a popular animal game. Bear cubs stand on their hind legs when they wrestle. . . Tag is a favorite game of hoofed animals." Agreeable as the subject is, Freedman's fiat, unemotional descriptions of animal play and its relationship to later survival, fail to develop any momentum or kick. So while St. Tamara's graceful line drawings set the mood of benign good humor, the double-page scenes of frolicking chimps, dolphins, and beaver kits invite only passive admiration.