The Goats

Brock Cole

Jun 2010 · Sold by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

About this ebook

Harmless camp pranks can quickly spiral out of control, but they also provide a perfect opportunity for two social outcasts to overcome and triumph.

A boy and a girl are stripped and marooned on a small island for the night. They are the "goats." The kids at camp think it's a great joke, just a harmless old tradition. But the goats don't see it that way. Instead of trying to get back to camp, they decide to call home. But no one can come and get them. So they're on their own, wandering through a small town trying to find clothing, food, and shelter, all while avoiding suspicious adults—especially the police. The boy and the girl find they rather like life on their own. If their parents ever do show up to rescue them, the boy and the girl might be long gone. . . .

The Goats is a 1987 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year.

Ratings and reviews

The descriptions are incredible, and you can really picture what they are describing. I do have to warn parents of children under the age of ten that you may not want to let your child read it till their older,but still a great book.

The story is really touching. This book is so interesting than the movie, I think. And the story is only 12% different than the movie. Laura was a mature girl at the middle of the story than Howie. But maybe if put a little romantic part, it would be more touching story ever, I guess.

I loved the movie "standing up"! It was absolutely AMAZING! It meant so much to me!!! I will read the book soon! (Hopefully) PS. I watched standing up when I was 11 and I am now 12. I love the movie:)

About the author

BROCK COLE is the author of several highly acclaimed novels as well as the author and illustrator of many picture books, including Good Enough to Eat, Buttons, and Larky Mavis. He's also the illustrator of George Washington's Teeth, available from Square Fish. He lives in Buffalo, New York.

Of his first novel, The Goats, Anita Silvey wrote in a Horn Book Magazine editorial, "The Goats reaffirms my belief that children's literature is alive and thriving." Betsy Hearne, editor of The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, lauded it as "one of the most important books of the decade."