WHEN THE GOAT ATE CHRISTMAS

A farmyard animal wreaks havoc on Christmas Eve.

Doyle sets the scene effectively with a cartoonish depiction of a house and snow-blanketed pines; youngsters will notice Santa sliding headfirst down the chimney. “It was the night before Christmas, and all through the house, / not a creature was stirring, not even a—” “BAAHH!” The next scene finds pale-skinned Santa inside, wiping soot from his suit—and looking surprised to see a bleating, googly-eyed goat staring right at him. Clever text continues to riff on Clement Clarke Moore’s famous poem (“Santa let the goat be, kept on working as planned, / and opened his sack with a flick of his hand”), coupled with bright, exaggerated artwork. Readers will enjoy the rhythm and rhymes—especially the pairing of suspicious with delicious. That last word spells out the goat’s intentions: to eat everything within sight, including gifts, newly stuffed stockings, and a Christmas tree. Santa tentatively, magically, restores order after sending the goat toward a wreath on the door, but the animal returns and gobbles up the cookies left for Santa, along with the naughty list, before hijacking Santa’s sleigh and riding off into the night—an abrupt ending that should delight readers with a taste for mayhem.

Entertainingly offbeat Yuletide hijinks.