Reviews Young Readers Reviews Humour ,
Follow the Goose Butt: Puns, Poems, Beauty & New Brunswick Geography Lessons
Follow the Goose Butt, Camelia Airheart! is about a young goose named Camelia who has trouble focusing and staying in line with her flock as they fly in their V formation. Not to mention her faulty GPS (her Goose Positioning System)!
To combat this and try to stay focused and in formation, she should be following the Canada Goose Rule #1, which states: “Follow your instincts.” However, she is more inclined to follow Camelia’s Rule #1, which states: “Follow the goose butt.”
Camelia gets distracted easily, and during one of those distractions, she loses sight of the goose butt in front of her along with the rest of her flock. She knows where the flock is headed but she doesn’t know how to get there. So with the help of some animal friends she meets along the way, she gets back on track on her journey across New Brunswick, to rejoin her flock.
As an adult reading this children’s book, as I turned each page I came across some passage or line that made me giggle and think to myself, “Kids will get a kick out of that … heck, grown-ups will get a kick out of that!” This book contains puns, alliteration, poems and beautiful, incredibly detailed illustrations that present the story in an extra special way. It also teaches children about Atlantic Canada’s diverse wildlife and the geography of New Brunswick. Young readers that are not from New Brunswick will be introduced to the lesser known areas of the province and children local to the region will recognize many of the place names.
It is clear that the three authors of this book have a love for teaching, nature and storytelling. Together, they have created a lovely story that will entertain children and adults, and will also make you giggle (just as Camelia “recalled the giggles from her gaggle”). This book is full of cute and amusing puns and the dialogue between the characters is funny and sweet. The reader won’t be able to help but smile.
Follow the Goose Butt, Camelia Airheart!
by Odette Barr, Colleen Landry and Beth Weatherbee
Chocolate River Publishing
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