The Serious Goose

November 4, 2019
How serious is this goose? We’re talking severity on steroids: on the back cover, she’s holding a copy of War and Geese. “DO NOT EVEN TRY TO BE SILLY AROUND THIS GOOSE!” writes late-night star Kimmel. The emphatic, all-caps black typography (which Kimmel also hand-drew) asserts that nothing will make this goose, with stern black brows and a safety-orange colored bill, drop her scowl, including putting a chicken on her head. Readers are invited to “give it a shot” with some funny-face-making, and a mylar mirror is included so that they can check their work: “BE DOOFY/ BE GOOFY/ ANY WAY YOU KNOW HOW.” But it’s really no use—or is it? In his savvy, funny picture-book debut, Kimmel uses his limited drawing style to great advantage; in fact, the less the goose does, the funnier it is. The interplay between the goose’s dour mien and the typography—which is every bit as much of a character as the bird in the title—drives much of the laughs. Most of all, Kimmel knows that when you tell a kid not to do something, it’s sure to unleash silliness of epic proportions. Ages 3–7.