Jan Wahl has retained the rhythmic, sly humor of this tall tale from Maryland told him by an old black man. When Sam Bombel goes out one day to hunt his dinner, he sees flying overhead a great big flock of geese, all singing: La lee loo. Come quilla, come quilla. Bang, bang, bang! Quilla bang. Readers' appetites will be whetted as they watch the farmer's wife pluck and roast the goose that Sam brings home. But just as he is about to stick his knife in that delicious-looking goose, swoosh, in through the window flies the whole flock to rescue the unlucky bird. Readers can sing the refrain to the music provided. Sterling Brown's rich, glossy oil paintings add drama to this brisk retelling of a cautionary tale.
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Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Grade 1-2?An African-American tall tale in which Sam Bombel shoots a singing goose and takes it home (though it does not appear to be dead) and commands his wife to pluck it and roast it. Just as Sam is about to carve it, the goose raises its head and sings a song. The song is answered by a flock of geese that flies through the window. They lift the cooked goose right out of the pot and they all fly away. And Sam Bombel never went hunting again. The very brief story is told in plain, unadorned language. It includes the goose's repeated song ("La lee loo. Come quilla, come quilla. Bang, bang, bang! Quilla bang.") The music appended is a haunting melody that is not easily sung. The realistic oil illustrations, while not distinguished in themselves, do have exaggerated expressions and perspectives that add humor. Even admitting that this is a tall tale, the pictures of the living goose being plucked, and of the cooked goose sitting in its roasting pan raw?head up, eyes wide, full of pin feathers?not only strain credibility, but are also vaguely repellent. A brief note on the flap states that the author heard this story from an old black man in West Virginia. Like many folktales, this one is bound to be livelier in the telling than it is on the written page. This story can be found, without music, in Jean Cothran's classic collection With a Wig With a Wag and Other American Folk Tales (David McKay, 1954; o.p.).?Kate McClelland, Perrot Memorial Library, Greenwich, CT
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Ages 3^-5. Retold with verve and illustrated with clear, handsome, double-page-spread oil paintings, this simple African American tall tale is fun for sharing with preschoolers, and the chant will have them joining in. Sam Bombel shoots a goose for his dinner, but it sings all the way down as it falls ("La lee loo . . . Bang, bang, bang"). It sings the same chant when Sam's wife plucks the goose's feathers and when she cooks it in the oven. Just as Sam picks up the knife to carve the roasted goose, it sings again, and a great swooshing flock of geese comes singing through the window to lift the bird from the pot and fly it home. The textured paintings extend the comedy, with the goose being very much a powerful presence in the kitchen, making cackling sounds in the oven, rocking the stove, and calling the geese to the rescue. Hazel Rochman
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