cover image Yes

Yes

Josse Goffin. Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Books, $13 (26pp) ISBN 978-0-688-12375-8

Belgian graphic artist Goffin has charmed readers with his quirky, single-syllable titles ( OH! , AH! ), which manifest a Zen-like simplicity and penchant for surprise. This latest is true to form. A tiny, Dutch Boy-like fellow in a tall blue hat finds an egg on a thoroughly nondescript street corner. Accompanied by an even tinier white dog, he parades his discovery past a gigantic series of egg-laying creatures, each of which successively rejects it with a cry of ``No!''--the book's only text. That is, until a bird sporting a matching blue hat flies by, removes the top of the eggshell and reveals its contents: this very book, YES. Boy and dog sit down to read, and all the animals sally forth to see the pictures. With their playful details, Goffin's crisp, brightly colored illustrations invite readers to ask and answer all the questions the story leaves open. Keen eyes will detect the arrival of the bird early on. The book-inside-a-book-inside-a-book ad infinitum gambit may well tantalize the very young. Ages 2-up. (May)