GORDON IN CHARGE
by Jill Newton & illustrated by Jill Newton
Newton illustrates her two Gordons, goat and goose, with passionate feeling and motion as they vie for authority over the barnyard. Gordon the goat thinks the test for power should be pushing down a gate, whereas Gordon the goose thinks it should be swimming fast; each wins his own event and they tie at two others before the farmer (guess what his name is) arrives to take over. He finds the two animals on the barn roof, wobbly and scared after a climbing contest, and carries them to the barn, where they lie quietly together, exhausted and chagrined—at least for the moment. Superbly drawn emotions on the faces of the animals and a vivid palette add to the appeal and readers will appreciate the phenomenon of duplicate names. Special less for the themes of bullying and posturing than for the super-expressive, always-in-motion illustrations. (Picture book. 2-5)