There's a Billy Goat in the Garden
PreSchool-Grade 2-A billy goat has gotten into the flower garden where a family's laundry is hanging to dry and the children can't get him out. The rooster tries to chase him away, followed by the dog and the pig and progressively larger animals, until even the galloping horse fails to budge the goat. The tiny bee decides to give it a try, despite the ridicule of the others, and, of course, succeeds, proving once again that size doesn't count. What does count here is the simple, rhythmic text, with rhyming adjectives and repetitive phrases that will have everyone in storyhour chiming in. The wonderful appliqu‚d illustrations are made mostly of felt, but the artist also uses cotton prints, buttons and beads, and detailed stitchery. The art is even more spirited than Beaton's There's a Cow in the Cabbage Patch (Barefoot, 2001); the pictures here are rich in texture and detail, and the narrative is a triumph of simplicity in storytelling.Susan Oliver, Tampa-Hillsborough Public Library System, FLCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.