Silly Goose's Big Story

Porcupine, Beaver, and Squirrel like Goose's great ideas for imaginary play, but why is he always the hero? Caught by Wolf, Goose convinces him that a wolf-eating monster is prowling, and Goose's friends provide credible sound effects--proving to him that they're heroes, too. Kasza's humorous cartoon-style illustrations reveal character development and a bit of subtext in this playful and fast-paced narrative.

Kasza has a talent for depicting real-world conflict in her amusing animal fantasies. Goose has a rich imagination and comes up with great ideas for imaginary play with his three friends (Porcupine, Beaver, and Squirrel), but he always assigns the hero role to himself. The friends get so busy arguing over the matter that no one sees the wolf sneak up on them. They all run, but Goose is caught when he trips on his royal cape (he was playing the mightiest king of all). Goose's storytelling ability serves him well as he persuades the wolf that there is a wolf-eating monster on the prowl, and his friends, listening from the bushes, provide the necessary sound effects to give Goose's wild story credibility, proving to him that they, too, can be heroes. The patterned narrative has a playful tone and fast pace that will make the book a good choice for reading aloud to young children, many of whom will immediately recognize the bossy Goose as one of their own. Kasza's humorous cartoon-style illustrations show both action and character, and they are always clear enough that even the characters' facial expressions can be easily seen from a distance. That's fortunate because, as with most of Kasza's picture books, there's a great deal of character development and a bit of subtext in the illustrations. kathleen t. horning