This Is My Rock

A kerchief-wearing goat defiantly guards a craggy hilltop, shouting at any animals that dare approach (including its own family members). “This is my rock,” the goat says, staring down its horns at a giant orange eagle making its descent. “Not your rock,” it continues in a circular inset, shaking its hoof at the retreating bird. A bear, a trio of foxes, and a friendly sparrowlike bird suffer similar fates, but after the goat gets cold and lonely, it charges down the rock face to retrieve its parent and siblings. Lucas (A Letter for Bear) ends his story abruptly—upon returning to the peak, the goat finds it claimed by the tiny bird he spurned—but the goat’s unwillingness to share even an inch of space will be familiar to a great many families. It’s Lucas’s illustrations that really sell the story, as well as the goat’s stubborn defensiveness. His warm palette, geometric borders, and stylized celestial objects are suggestive of the American Southwest, while his young hero’s wide, staring eyes and theatrical body language telegraph its anger, regret, and glee. Ages 3–7. (May)