Borka: the adventures of a Goose with no feathers by John Burningham

Little Borka is born without feathers. Her mother knits her a woollen jersey (jumper or sweater) but of course this useless for flying and hopeless for swimming. I love the names of his siblings: Freda; Archie; Jennifer; Oswald; and Timothy.

Then, as you might have anticipated, the geese all fly away migrating to a warmer climate and poor young Borka is left behind. Luckily, he is befriended by a ship's dog and at the end of a long voyage he finds himself in London, in Kew Gardens. I love the final sentence:

"So if you are in Kew Gardens and you see a goose who looks somehow different from the others - it might well be Borka." and when I read this book to groups of young children I would add - why not go up and say hello!

I spied this book at a recent charity book sale for just $1 and considering this book was published in 1963 (paperback edition 1992) it is in a fabulous condition.

The best book to pair with Borka is of course the fairy tale The Ugly Duckling. 

I read somewhere that the art of John Burningham can be divided into several categories. Borka is from his first period along with books like these:

Later John Burningham produced books like Simp, Oi, Get off our Train, Would you rather?, Courtney, Mr Gumpy's Outing, Come away from the Water Shirley, Where's Julius, Avocado Baby, and Harvey Slumfenburger's Christmas Present.

This is my favourite John Burningham book. Simp was originally titled Cannonball Simp and decades ago I found an amazing almost silent movie (not an animation) of Simp which was captivating. 

My own first encounter with the art of John Burningham was in the book Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Gozzle by Julia Donaldson illustrated by Sara Ogilvie

Bear wakes up from his hibernation. He sees an egg. He could eat this for breakfast, but then he hears it tapping and, quite suddenly, out pops a baby goose - a gosling. The bear is the first face she sees so of course she thinks this bear is her daddy. Young Goozle is "programmed" to follow and imitate the first face she sees which would usually be her own parents. To the young goose it seems obvious that Bear is her daddy. Bear is not happy but underneath his gruff exterior there are hints of his kindness and as the seasons progress it is also clear this pair are forming a strong bond. But then comes the day little Goozle is old enough to fly and then old enough to fly with her flock - it is time for the geese to migrate to a warmer place. Like all good parents, Bear worries about his young charge. Can she swim? Can she fly? Will she be safe when she flies away? And most important of all - will Bear ever see her again? Bear heads back to his cave to hibernate through the winter. Then spring arrives and so does ...

Julia Donaldson had been thinking about animal imprinting. Here is a list of animals that use this process to assist their young: geese, ducks, zebras, raccoons, guinea pigs, chickens, hyenas, and the turkey.

Here is a three minute video Q&A where Julia Donaldson talks about Gozzle. I'm sure you are very familiar with lots of Julia Donaldson picture books. My own favourites are: Follow the Swallow, The Magic Paintbrush, Tiddler, Who lives here?, Room on the Broom, and The Snail and the Whale. I have a plan to read Paper Dolls next - I gifted this to a friend for her granddaughter and then another friend mentioned it was a huge hit with her own four young children. 

I am sure you have your own Julia Donaldson book collection either at home or in your school library. Goozle is another sweet story by this master storyteller which is sure to charm young children and adults alike. The happy ending certainly made me smile.

Bookseller blurb: It's springtime. Bear has woken up hungry and finds a lost egg outside his cave. Breakfast? No! Out hatches Gozzle, a very sweet little gosling who is convinced that Bear must be her daddy – and that she should be able to climb, dig and eat honey just like him.

Sara Ogilvie was born in Edinburgh and now lives in Newcastle. She graduated with an Illustration/Printmaking degree from Edinburgh College of Art. Sarah has won numerous awards for her work including a Commonwealth Heads of Government commission, presented to Nelson Mandela and HRH Queen Elizabeth II. Her work is inspired by words, street life, antiquities, posters, old wives tales, household appliances, carpets, masks, trying to spell sounds, packaging and old second-hand bookshops… Nosy Crow  

She is the illustrator of many books including Dogs Don't Do Ballet, Do Not Enter the Monster Zoo, Once Upon a Wish and Julia Donaldson's Detective Dog.

If you are thinking of your library program it would be terrific to explore some Julia Donaldson books with your young groups and then, even better, use these as a jumping off point to explore all the different illustrators whose work is showcased via her huge body of work. I would explore illustrators such as Helen Oxenbury; Charlotte Voake; Yuval Zommer; Emily Gravett; Catherine Rayner; Sharon King-Chai; Rebecca Cobb; and of course Axel Scheffler. 

Donaldson’s collaborations beyond Axel Scheffler offer refreshing artistic variety while keeping the same warmth and playfulness that children love. In Gozzle, Ogilvie’s textured and expressive artwork is the perfect companion to Donaldson’s storytelling, helping bring to life a tale that is as visually rich as it is emotionally meaningful. Popular Picture Books

Duck, Duck, Goose by Tad Hills

 

Duck and Goose are best friends. Goose is a sensitive soul who loves tiny things in the world such as butterflies - especially that beautiful blue butterfly that has just landed on his head! He can't wait to show his friend Duck, but Goose does know he needs to move carefully and speak very softly so as not to startle the butterfly. 

Meanwhile Duck has found a new friend and she is wild! Thistle lives to compete, and she lives to win! She is a huge boaster and has to 'out do' everyone. 

The three play all day but Goose is not having fun. Every game turns into a competition and every time Thistle just has to win. Eventually (in a deeply emotional moment) Goose just walks away. Your young reading companions might gasp when they hear what Thistle says about this:

"Oh, that guy was going to lose anyway."

Notice how Thistle doesn't even know his name and Duck is so keen to please his new friend he does not notice his friend's reactions. BUT when they do finally talk, they hatch the perfect plan to trick young Thistle.

There are quite a few books about Duck and Goose - Duck, Duck, Goose is the second book in the series which began with this one.

Blurb from author page: Duck & Goose, Goose & Duck. Feathered friends forever . . . or are they? That’s what we discover in this charming and hilarious follow-up to the bestselling Duck & Goose. You see, there’s a challenge to their friendship: a little whippersnapper of a duck named Thistle. Thistle’s good at everything (or so she thinks), from math to holding her breath to standing on her head. Duck thinks she’s fantastic. But Goose does not! And so Goose is faced with a problem close to the hearts of children everywhere: what happens when your best friend makes a new friend?

One hopes that in the next installment, Thistle may learn a thing or two, but at least Duck and Goose have figured out how to handle her. The charming illustrations portray this tale of friendship perfectly ... Kirkus

My only tiny reservation about this story based on the concept of 'twos company, threes a crowd' is that nothing is really resolved at the end. Duck and Goose have tricked Thistle but what happens when she wakes up - this is certainly a great moment in the story for a discussion with your preschool or Kindergarten group.

Tad Hills is the #1 New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of the Rocket and Duck & Goose series, including the New York Times bestselling picture books How Rocket Learned to Read; Rocket Writes a Story; R Is for Rocket; Duck & Goose; Duck, Duck, Goose; Duck & Goose Go to the Beach; and Duck & Goose, Honk! Quack! Boo! ... Tad lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife, two children, and his real-life dog, Rocket, who has not yet learned to read. Penguin Random House

Listen to Tad Hills here talking about his books. You will love seeing the full size Duck and Goose. 

Duck, Duck Goose was published in the US in 2007 and reprinted here in Australia in 2009 so sadly it is no longer in print. I picked up my copy for just 50 cents at a recent charity book sale. I am keen to gift this book to the grandchild of a friend and I will keep an eye out for any board books by Tad Hills - I think they would make good gifts for very young children.

The Snow Angel by Christine Leeson illustrated by Jane Chapman

 

I am a bit behind with my posts this week and with my plan to share twelve books for Christmas. Once again I am sharing a book that is sadly out of print (published in 2006) but you might be lucky and find it in a library. This is a gentle story to share with a young child - it would make a wonderful bedtime story perhaps on Christmas eve. 

There are glitter touches on the cover of this book and also on many pages. The library I visit each week still use date due slips and so I can see this book has been borrowed several times every year at Christmas. I am sure the glitter cover and the huge, beautiful bird and those adoring mice must be the reason.

This is a sweet Christmas story to share with a preschool child. The mice children Daisy and Sam wake up on Christmas morning. The land is covered in snow. Their mother gives them each a parcel of berries and hazelnuts. The young mice decide to save their treats for later because they are keen to get outside and play in the snow. Overhead they see a huge white bird - she looks like an angel. As they watch this beautiful creature falls into the snow. The little mice move closer and they see she is unwell.

"Little mice, can you help me ... My friends and I have flown for days from a land of ice and snow, but last night I lost them in a storm. Now I am so tired and hungry ..."

Stop and think about this. What can these young mice do to help the "angel"? Remember I told you they were saving their Christmas treats.  The beautiful bird is able to eat and rest and eventually she recovers enough to spread her wings and fly away but as she lifts off beautiful white feathers float down onto the little mice. They gather the soft treasures and take them home. Their mother is delighted with the goose feathers that the whole family can now use to line their nest. 

"We'll feel as if we're sleeping in the clouds tonight!".

You can see more books illustrated by Jane Chapman here. In 2016 I talked about another Christmas book by Christine Leeson.

The Gift of Christmas

Little Goose's Autumn by Elli Woollard illustrated by Briony May Smith

"And one apple-red, dappled-red, breeze-blown day, 

When the goose went down to the lakeside to play,

She felt in her heart a sharp tugging pain,

Like a strange kind of longing she couldn't explain."

A little goose feels a tug at her heart but what does it mean? She knows it is now autumn so she sets off to ask the other forest animals. The beavers are chopping wood, the squirrels are gathering acorns and the bears are preparing their den for their winter sleep.

It is Autumn here in Australia so this is the prefect book to share with your young reading companion. And yes it is fairly new (2020) so it is available. I am happy to report that the rhyme used in this book works really well (sadly this is not always the case). 

See inside this book here.

I have talked about other Animal Migration and Bird Migration books on this blog. The perfect companion read to go with Little Goose's Autumn would be Lucy Goosey by Margaret Wild illustrated by Ann James.

Here is the companion volume by Elli Woollard and Briony May Smith:

Lucy Goosey by Margaret Wild illustrated by Ann James

Begin with the opening end papers. Geese are happily playing in their pond. Some are laughing, some are soaking up the warm rays of sunshine and some are 'duck diving' for fish with their little bottoms up in the air. It is such a happy scene. Lucy loves her pond. It is her home. On this pond she has learned how to jump from a rock and how to wiffle her wings for a landing on water. Time is passing, however, and her mother explains soon all the geese will need to fly to another country.

The day finally arrives. The flock fly away but Lucy is left behind.

"Lucy Goosey swam around in lonely little circles."

Of course her mother has not deserted Lucy. Her mother comes back and talks to Lucy about her fear of leaving.

"What if I loose my way in the misty moisty clouds?"
"What if I am caught in a storm and get tossed into the tree tops?"
"What if I get tired and fall into the cold, dark sea?"

Her mother assures Lucy she will keep her safe.

Then it is Lucy's turn to reassure her mother that she, Lucy, will take also take care of her mother even when she is old.

On the final end paper we see mother and daughter flying away across the wide blue sky.

This book is utterly delicious to read aloud. The language is perfect, the emotional arc is very satisfying and the illustrations are almost tactile. It is one of my all time favourite picture books.I have read this book aloud to young children hundreds of times. It never looses its charm or magic. The reassurance by the mother goose and the role reversal when Lucy reassures her mother delight me with every reading. Here is an interview with Ann James where she talks about creating Lucy Goosey.

I would pair Lucy Goosey with Puffling, Little Humpty, Little home Bird and Can't you sleep Little Bear?

Farfallina and Marcel by Holly Keller

Tuesday Treasure

Farfallina, the caterpillar, meets the gosling Marcel. The pair quickly become great friends. Playing hide and seek and enjoying their pond environment.

"Farfallina liked his soft feathers and his gentle eyes."

"He (Marcel) liked Farfallina's smile and her pretty colors."

One day Farfallina feels a little unwell. She retreats to the top branches of a tree and as time passes, Marcel comes to think he will never see her again.  Meanwhile Farfallina is undergoing a transformation. Of course Marcel is changing too.  Farfallina emerges from her cocoon transformed into a beautiful butterfly. She looks around for her old friend but all she can see is a large handsome goose on the pond. The pair strike up a conversation and make the amazing discovery.

"It's funny,' Marcel said, 'but I feel as though I've known you a long time.'
'I was just thinking the same thing,' said Farfallina."

This heartwarming, colorfully illustrated story underscores beautifully the power of true friendship without glossing over the reality that change is inevitable as friends grow and mature. Kirkus

Listen to this book reading on NPR. Farfallina and Marcel was given the Charlotte Zolotow Award in 2003.  I adore this book - it is a beautiful story of friendship, understanding, acceptance of difference, loyalty and hope for the future happiness of this unlikely pair of friends.

I have always liked the art of Holly Keller.  Here are her books about Geraldine which sadly are out of print:

I would pair Farfallina and Marcel with Caterpillar Dreams by Jeanne Willis illustrated by Tony Ross.

The Goose Road by Rowena House

Rowena House has such a simple writing style but she manages to pack so much heart into each and every page.   A Fiction Addiction

Blending real-life hardships and the horrors of WWI with an overarching fairy tale-esque adventure, this is a classic David versus Goliath story in which a girl steps up to fight multiple Goliaths with large doses of determination, wit and a willingness to take risks. Highly recommended. Love Reading 4Kids

Reading a whole book in one day is an indulgence but it also equates to a captivating plot. Angelique is living in France.  It is 1916. The family are only just surviving on their family farm. Her father has been killed on the front and her brother is fighting on the Somme. Angelique and her mother are very hard working but after their cattle and horses are requisitioned by the army harvesting seems impossible. Angelique writes to her beloved Uncle Gustav and he arrives and offers practical help (he made me so happy) but then Angelique's mother confesses her husband had terrible debts and they are not even able to pay back the interest and the debt collectors will show no mercy.

Uncle Gustav and Angelique set off to sell the family geese. They hope to obtain a high price by taking them to the front lines.  "Top brass, that's what we need - rich officers with more money than sense ... the richest pickings of all might well be at Frevent. ... (we will find) the Commander-in-Chief of the Battle of the Somme."  This is a long and harrowing journey and you will feel you are taking every slow and cold step with Angelique.

At its heart this is a book about determination and trust. Reading this book I kept shouting at Angelique to be careful. So many people who purported to be kind turned out to be cunning swindlers. It still feels slightly amazing to me that Angelique did manage all of those geese and she did sell them for an excellent price. Be warned though, the personal cost is very high.

This book is listed as 12+ but I think a mature senior primary student would cope with the descriptions of violence by Angelique's father and also of the maimed soldiers returning from the front lines.  Once again thanks to Beachside Bookshop for passing me this Advanced Reader Copy.  here is a detailed review.  At the back of the book the author note explains the inspiration for this story and details all the research Rowena completed. The authenticity of the setting shows how well she synthesized all this material into a gripping historical novel - but more than that it is a book that features a wonderful hero. I highly recommend The Goose Road.

"You can't herd the geese to the Front ... 

But you can buy them a railway ticket."