REBEL

Schoenherr (Bear, 1991, etc.) excels in an expressive and original tale. The narrative is restrained and succinct: A pair of wild geese return north to a familiar wooded pond to nest. They hatch and rear their young until it's time to leave for the brooding ground before all fly south in the autumn. A simple tale, simply told. But another tale takes place in the pictures, a perfectly pitched counterpoint to the story and the reason for the book's title. Exquisitely rendered watercolors show that one of the goslings is insatiably curious, an inveterate adventurer. Like a wayward toddler, this gosling constantly strays to investigate such fascinating pond neighbors as frogs and butterflies. It has several narrow misses with a hawk, a snapping turtle, and some hungry raccoons before getting lost overnight. The reunion with its parents makes for an immensely satisfying conclusion, and children will want to search back through the pages for evidence of the first rebellion and the last. (Picture book. 3-7)