Father, Dear Father

v, 247 pp. "Barbara Bemelmans, the pre-teen daughter of Ludwig Bemelmans, accompanied by her poodle, Little Bit, leads her father on a glorious romp through Europe. Barbara sees everything for the first time through young eyes, so does Little Bit; and so does Ludwig that unsophisticated and merry sophisticate. Starting in New York, their trail leads them joyfully to France, Austria and Italy and ends at Christmas in New York's Bowery where Barbara concludes the story with the words, "As usual, Poppy has to love everybody." Father, Dear Father is a tale of happiness told with true Bemelmans verve and exuberance."