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Summary
Summary
Goat has always dreamed of having his very own space.
But Goat lives in a petting zoo, surrounded by hugs and rubs and grabby little hands.
Determined to find his perfect alone space, Goat escapes into the big zoo. But space is not an easy thing to find, in this humorous picture book from Jacob Grant, Through with the Zoo .
Author Notes
Jacob Grant lives with his wife and child in a city that's both windy and crowded. In their small home Jacob writes and illustrates books like Cat Knit and Little Bird's Bad Word , dreaming of the day he'll have a little more space.
Reviews (2)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Goat lives in a petting zoo, and is fed up with all the "grabby little hands" hugging and rubbing him. When he notices the animals in the big zoo, he heads there to find a space "just for him." But the big zoo has its own set of challenges. The koala is clingy. The penguins like to cluster and the monkeys groom him like one of their own. Running away, Goat finds a lone tree to climb-respite, finally! But being alone can be lonely too, and Goat returns to the petting zoo; "everyone needs a hug now and then." The predictable story is improved by its simple sentences and well-matched illustrations. Grant's warm-toned, digitally colored crayon-and-charcoal illustrations add depth and context to the story arc. All the drawings are framed in white space while Goat is in the petting zoo-he's boxed in. When he makes a break for it, he leaps out of the frame and into full-page spreads with white backgrounds representing the big zoo. When even that is too much togetherness, he explores farther afield and the background darkens; he is left in pages of full color. Back home at the petting zoo the tones lighten again. But Goat is the star of this visual show. Like Mo Willems's Pigeon, his whole internal process shows in his eyes. Everyone can relate to the need to grow, and the appreciation for familiarity. VERDICT A lovely storytime selection for larger collections.-Lisa Lehmuller, Paul Cuffee Maritime Charter School, Providence © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
An unsatisfied goat chafes at the confines of the petting zoo he calls home. "Every day the small petting zoo was packed with grabby little hands"-an understandably terrible situation for a goat who doesn't "want hugs or rubs or anyone near him." Looking longingly at the "big zoo" nearby, Goat takes the plunge, hoping for privacy and breathing room. Instead, he finds a "clingy koala," "nosy elephant," and monkeys that treat him like a jungle gym. Stumbling upon a lone tree, "Goat had more space than he'd ever dreamed of. But was it too much?" Grant (Cat Knit) sets the initial scenes within thick white borders that heighten Goat's claustrophobia. He leaps into that white space when he makes his escape, and subsequent images fill the spreads to the edge, including after he returns to the petting zoo. Goat's big eyes telegraph his emotions with gentle humor, and the muted colors and gauzy textures of Grant's illustrations underscore a sense of empathy that extends to readers (and parents) caught between growing independence and the recognition that "everyone needs a hug now and then." Ages 2-6. Agent: Steven Chudney, Chudney Agency. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.