GOOSE

Young Sophie is portrayed with yellow hair and a red dress and smiles out at readers as the story begins. Soon she makes the acquaintance of a most amiable goose.

Sophie is like many girls. She enjoys her dolls and dressing up. But sometimes she is lonely playing by herself. Even when her mother takes her to the park, she opts for the slide and swings instead of the seesaw. “Sophie wishes she had a friend to play with.” On the facing page is an ovular bit of golden yellow on the right that catches the narrator’s attention: “But wait. What’s that?” The page turn reveals Sophie’s surprised excitement at meeting Goose. They play all day. “When it is time to go home, Goose wants to come, too.” Unfortunately, Mom, always pictured from the hip down, disagrees. But Goose is at the park the next day. They play until Goose sees some of his fellow geese heading south. Saddened, Goose and Sophie give each other a fierce goodbye hug. Thankfully, their parting is short-lived—and this time, Mom says he can come home. Wall’s spare text allows her thick-lined, childlike illustrations to fully convey the tale’s emotional arc. The white and yellow used for both Sophie and Goose glow brilliantly against the vibrant hues chosen for the background.

Simple, elegant design produces a title with high appeal for the preschool set.