SHAKE IT OFF!

After a fall down a well, a little goat saves herself with her tenacity and her song.

With brilliantly saturated colors, showy full-bleed illustrations, and evocative depictions of music, this tale looks incredibly inviting, and its ungulate protagonist makes an undeniably appealing first impression. But wherever readers think this cheerful-looking story might go, they’re probably wrong. Sure, a note promising a happy ending hints that there might be darkness along the way, but most readers will have no clue what they’re in for. Little Goat irritates the neighbors with her enthusiastic climbing and caterwauling. After she falls into a deep well with no clear path for rescue, the neighbors decide to skip the pleasantries and give her a “decent burial.” (“It’s sad, but she was pretty annoying,” they reason.) As they begin shoveling dirt, Little Goat, showcasing surely the most incredulous goat face in kid lit history, persists. She sings to encourage herself to “shake it off. Pack it under” until she rises from the hole; the neighbors now gaze at her in admiration. Readers learn little about the protagonist beyond her quirks; Little Goat is a bit of a one-note character. But the narration is agreeably conversational, and children will root for Little Goat as she uses traits perceived as faults to save herself.

A tale likely to strike a chord with fans of the unconventional.