THREE BILLY GOATS GRUFF

Rounds has never won the big awards, but this gem is evidence of a marvelous talent that has produced ever stronger and subtler illustration since Ol' Paul, the Mighty Logger (1936). He tells this familiar tale like a fine storyteller who doesn't remember the traditional words, exactly, but knows what's important and which corners want smoothing to suit his audience, producing a vigorous text—as good as the original—that tempers the violence (the troll is knocked into the river and never seen again) without compromising the tale's essential character. The illustrations may be Rounds's best. His bold, black, angular lines are feathered or broken here, varied in weight or smudged into the judiciously added color that brightens the clean white pages, to create marvels of characterization: the prancing goats' careless arrogance is slyly modulated from goat to goat and scene to scene, while the troll—despite gory-looking extremities and a terrible visage—has an appealing vulnerability. The designer deserves special credit for choosing a bold but elegant typeface that harmonizes perfectly with Rounds's art, in weight and position and through the many changes in size that the tale demands. Absolutely splendid. (Folklore/Picture book. 1-8)