Martha.(Brief Article)(Children's Review)

MARTHA GENNADY SPIRIN. Philomel, $14.99 (32p) ISBN 0-399-23980-4

Spirin (The Tale of the Firebird) fans will welcome his latest book, which reveals something of his own life. One winter evening, Spirin's wife and five-year-old son, Ilya, return to their Moscow apartment with an injured crow. An earth-toned watercolor shows the family in the veterinarian's waiting room along with a motley assortment of bundled-up Muscovites and their animals. "The bird will never fly again," says the veterinarian, a grinning man holding a big needle. "Put it to sleep." "Mama, Papa. I am not going to let him!" says Ilya. "This is my crow!" In the early pages, Spirin's portraits appear …