THIS IS MY DAUGHTER

THIS IS MY DAUGHTER Roxana Robinson (Random House, $25) Trying to combine two divorce-splintered families is a bit like trying to make a souffle in a thunderstorm: The delicate balance collapses at the first loud noise. Such, anyway, is the conclusion to be drawn from this novel, the story of Emma, the mother of 3-year-old Tess, and Peter, the father of 7-year-old Amanda, and their decision to make their two households one. Amanda quickly grows into a stereotype of the abandoned, resentful child (she doesn't wash, dyes her hair black and green, skips tennis lessons, smokes pot). When the various conflicts finally come to a head, it becomes clear that this is really a portrait of parenthood, with all its wild loves and anguished fears. While it may not be revelatory, it is compulsively readable. B+