Master cartoonist and author Jules Feiffer takes a common familyscenario and plays it out to the hilarious end in his delightful, over-the-toppicture book By the Side of the Road. " `If you don`t behave,` my fathersaid, `I`m gonna pull over right here, and you can wait by the side of the roadtill we come and get you. `" Little brother Rudy decides to cooperate, whileolder brother Richard chooses to wait by the side of the road: " An hour later Iwas kind of used to it. Two hours later it was where I wanted to live. " Threehours later, his family comes back for him, but he`s not ready to go. He`s notready the next time, either, but does accept a hamburger. And a sweater. Eventually, he is living full-time by the side of the road, aided by mother andfather only occasionally dropping by with a poncho or a snowsuit, or a house,tutor, and generator, depending upon the season. Richard`s elaborate tunnelsystem for storing " secret stuff" from comic books to " bottles thrown out of carwindows" is straight out of every child`s wildest dreams, as is hismock-Thoreau-style existence, free from grumpy dad and family rules (but wellstocked with computer games and other essentials) .Throughout this outlandish scenario (Richard grows up and has his own family,still by the side of the road, later to be joined by his elderly parents) , wethink about discipline (" The way he said it made me unlearn the lesson I wasright then in the middle of learning" ) , about family (" Sometimes you have tomake concessions" ) , about independence, about dependence (" I`m hungry and I`mcold" ) , about loneliness, and about self-sufficiency. Feiffer`s expressive,fluid drawings capture every motion and emotion with just the right lines,making this crazy run-on picture book a rousing success. (Ages 7 and older) --Karin Snelson