One winter in a marsh near their home close to the Chesapeake Bay, a brother and sister find a Canada goose decoy that comes to life and shares her sad story with them.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
While exploring the marsh near their home, a sister and brother find an abandoned goose decoy. Naming it Alice, the children set the decoy in their room, where it faces the river. As the two argue over a game, an unfamiliar voice interrupts them. Enchanted by their talking decoy, the siblings listen to the goose's woeful tale of having once been real. A hunter's gunshot took her life and separated her from her mate. Unfortunately, the tone of debut author/artist Clearman's text is as vacant as her decoy's pitted cork body. Congested by a rush of stiff prose, the tale takes the obvious path and misses intriguing possibilities. The goose teaches the children to fly; turned into geese, they soar into the sky and return with the goose's lost mate, who nuzzles the decoy back to life. But even the vibrant illustrations can't summon enough magic to bring this book to life. Ages 6-12.
Copyright 1996 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
K-Gr 4--On a cold winter day, a brother and sister find a wooden goose hidden in a Chesapeake Bay marsh. They discover the decoy is charmed after she speaks to them and describes her former life as a living Canada Goose. Shot by a hunter, she was transformed into a decoy as she fell to the earth. Separated from her mate, she lay in the reeds until the children find her. The goose teaches them to fly, and they set off to find the missing gander. When the children return with him, the spell is broken and the two birds fly off together. This tale of fantasy depends upon readers believing in its magic. Unfortunately, the stilted dialogue and uninspired narrative make the story seem implausible rather than magical. Full-page illustrations adequately complement the story with impressionistic landscapes and birds in rich pastels. But the children and the hunter add an awkward and stiff presence to the scenes. An interesting idea that falls short of success.
Paula A. Kiely, Milwaukee Public Library, WI
Copyright 1996 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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More About the Author
Deborah Clearman was born in North Carolina and grew up on a tobacco farm in Southern Maryland. She studied art history and fine arts at Bryn Mawr College and pursued a career in painting. Represented by First Street Gallery in New York City, her paintings and prints have been widely exhibited in galleries and museums. She wrote and illustrated THE GOOSE'S TALE (Whispering Coyote Press) for children. Rediscovering an early passion--her first (unpublished) novel written at age ten was forty pages, handwritten--she changed focus from painting to writing fiction. Her short stories have appeared in a number of literary journals. TODOS SANTOS is her first novel.
Clearman is Program Director for NY Writers Coalition, a nonprofit organization that gives voice to formerly unheard members of society through the art of writing. A mother of two grown children, she lives in New York City and Guatemala.
Author photo by Marion Ettlinger
Clearman is Program Director for NY Writers Coalition, a nonprofit organization that gives voice to formerly unheard members of society through the art of writing. A mother of two grown children, she lives in New York City and Guatemala.
Author photo by Marion Ettlinger
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is a good book for six year olds,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Goose's Tale (Hardcover)
It is magical and has a happy ending. Perfect for reading aloud! Beautiful pastel illustration
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