Zelda the Varigoose

PreS-K—The goose from Remembering Crystal (NorthSouth, 2010) is back. Like many youngsters, she enjoys changing her persona as she allows her imagination to take flight. The left side of each spread features a digitalized photo of the habitat of a different creature. Opposite, Zelda becomes a different animal through the assistance of an overlay. A rhyming couplet introduces readers to each conversion: for example, when Zelda becomes a snail, "It doesn't matter where I roam,/Because I always feel at home." The verso shows a mottled green leaf while the recto reveals the gosling superimposed on a white city map. Painted on the overlay are the spiraled shell and antennae that fit neatly over Zelda's body and instantly change her into a "Goosnail." After the little bird transforms into a "Chamelegoose," a "Goosquid," and so on, she is also perfectly content to just be herself. Child appeal is high due to the sweet illustrations and easily read and understood rhymes, and the chance for children to transform the bird themselves.—Maryann H. Owen, Racine Public Library, WI