Five goats in a boat . . . what could possibly go wrong?

To avoid the troll under the bridge, the goats take to the water to deliver Granny Goat's birthday cake.
Mishaps, chaos, and hilarity ensue! This would make a great read-aloud, and a terrific bedtime story.
I tacked on an extra star for the sweet ending.

Thank you to the author, Two Lions and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My apologies for the delay in posting, I have had continuing familial health challenges to contend with in the past months.

This children's book is a very funny and silly read about five goats that want to visit their grandmother on her birthday. Preparations are made, plans are laid, and everything goes awry - the trip is difficult and adventures are had. The biggest surprise is waiting for them once they finally arrive at their grandmother's house. The illustrations are fantastic, with lots of quirky details, and the story is told in rhyme. I'm usually not a fan, but this works really well here.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Two Lions and the author for providing me with an arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Goats Afloat follows five goatkids on their journey to their grandma's house to celebrate her birthday. The five goats need to find a way to avoid going over the bridge and meeting the resident bridge troll, so they choose to take a boat and sail the river. Well, let's just say things don't go as planned!

The story is funny and whimsical, it's told in rhyme and it's very entertaining. The illustrations are pretty and capture the fun aspects of the story in a perfect way. They are also very detailed, which adds even more to the story.

Libro troppo buffo e divertente. Il finale fá troppo ridere ed é inaspettato. Il racconto é divertente e tiene i bambini attenti. Il fatto che é in rima lo rende ancora più bello. Da comprare assolutamente. Illustrazioni belle, fresche e non pesanti. Per nulla scontato o stereotipato

A group of goats take a trip to grandma's house, but instead of taking the bridge with a troll under it, they go the long way and end up on quite an adventure! I loved the rhyming in this book and the illustrations were great! This was an immediate purchase for me - my toddler loved it!

Five goats are determined to get themselves – and a birthday cake – to their gran's in time for her birthday. But there's a river with a bridge – and a bridge with a troll – right in the way. So they take the watery way round – but things won't be quite as simple as they'd like.

I don't see the rhyming scheme used by the author to have been very simple for her, either – it's an unusual one of AABA, and sometimes AAAA, all in snappy short lines. But when you get sound effects and you don't know if they're part of the rhythm of the text you get to see this is not perfect. I didn't take much to the art style, either, but beyond the versifying the text isn't a classic. You get a nice twist at the end, but before then you get a sense the goats' characters are supposed to be coming across, and this is just too short for that to happen.

All told the poetry makes it a kind of must-read, as it really is distinctive and worth your time, but that said it feels underwhelming, and I had both the taste of this being something that tried too hard and not tried hard enough, at the same time. That oddity leaves three and a half stars the resulting score.

A super funny and at moments silly read. These five little goats are scared of a troll under the bridge, and the fear to cross it, brings them to a series of funny adventures.

The illustrations, the huge amount of details and stunning colors are a great plus to me, and they add so much to the whole story.

I would highly recommend it

This is an adorable picture book with fantastic rhymes.

It is Grandma Goat's birthday and the grand goats want to visit her. They pack their presents and cake into a boat to avoid the bridge troll. Nothing is quite as it seems and the journey is difficult.

Told with humorous rhymes and pictures. this is a fantastic picture book to read with kids. In many ways it turns The Billy Goats Gruff on its head.

Thank you to Net Galley and Two Lions for the ARC. All opinions are my own!

A fun and creative adventure. We follow five goats trying to get the special birthday cake to Granny Goat. They decide to take a boat just as a precaution from the bridge troll what they didn't expect was a silly adventure packed with unexpected twists. A great story showing little ones that when things go crazy that sometimes you just have to go with the flow. Enjoy this exciting adventure together.

i really liked the illustrations, i loved the message behind this story. i think that children will like how colourful the illustations are as well as the story line.

An adorable and clever twist on the classic fairy tale 3 Billy Goats Gruff. A laugh out loud entraining story adults will enjoy as much as their little ones.

Whimsical and amusing retelling of The Three Billy Goats Gruff with a HEA for everyone!

Goats Afloat by Lezlie Evans is the whimsically amusing tale of a family of goats in a story with elements similar to the familiar, old fairytale of The Three Billy Goats Gruff. In this updated version, the goat family has expanded to five, and there is a wonderful happy-ever-after in store for all involved.

Told with rhyme and rhythm, rather than the possibly frightening and confrontational meetings set on the bridge pitting cunning goats against an evil troll, this is a fun story with goats on a mission to celebrate Granny Goat’s birthday at her home some ways away. Worried about the troll who lives under the bridge, which is on the only footpath to granny’s house, the goats hatch a plan to bypass it entirely and travel downriver by canoe, carrying with them a tall and delicious-looking but very unstable and wobbly birthday cake. The suspense around whether that cake is going to make it is very much a part of the fun. The young troll is very interested in what the goats are up to, but in a curiously longing fashion, as if he’s sad at being left out of the coming celebration. With a girl goat and boy goats, some less athletic and others more physically coordinated in the group, this little story has five goats of varying characteristics and abilities for children to consider and relate to, and all the characters are adorable.

What would a children’s picture be without gloriously colorful images to help tell the tale? This one is filled with cute and engaging illustrations by Julia Patton, and it has lots of fun details to examine with each and every reading. Children and the adult guiding them through the story will delight in trying to locate the shy troll hiding on every page as he follows the goats’ progress down the river in their canoe.

The book would be perfect for bedtime reading or reading aloud and sharing in larger group settings. With its variety of characters, detailed illustrations, and sweet story with its surprise ending, this book could attract interest and provide entertainment over multiple readings. I recommend GOATS AFLOAT for children of all ages and for sharing at home, in the classroom, or after-school program settings.

I loved this book! The rhyming, the graphics, it was perfect for my children who are 2 and 5. They have asked to read this book several times! I will be buying this book for my physical library when it comes out June 1, 2025.

Thank you to NetGalley and Two Lions for the advanced reader copy.

Wonderfully silly with equally quirky and silly illustrations that will have you grinning and finding something new hidden within each read. In my mind, I realized I was getting a Dr. Seuss vibe as I read, aloud of course, and chuckled at the five goats' misadventures. The playful vibe runs throughout, even when the goats seem to encounter danger although you may be so busy scanning the illustrations on each page to see what you can see or read the little signs that pop up here and there to fret over the cartoon danger.

Kids are going to love this one, especially if you (or the children themselves) have a bit of the dramatic and can get into the goofiness of the rhythm and rhyme. The text is even scattered about at times, no designated spot reserved, such as when it seems to flow down the river with the boat. Colors are bright and, well, colorful, and each of the goats seems to have a distinctive look, a plus in my mind. Their intentions are good, of course, to take a birthday cake and gift to Granny but, oh, no, they're scared to cross the bridge and encounter the scary troll, so they hatch a plan of jumping into a boat to get there. Needless to say, their plan doesn't exactly work out but that is where the fun really begins. I won't run the fun by detailing the story, which actually contains several teachable moments, but will say to keep your eyes on not just the bouncy rhymes but the illustrations. See who or what you can spy as you join them on their journey. The beaver is just the first. And, hey, what a surprise they're in for at the end when they meet Granny's guest.

Serious fun. I loved this. The illustrations are whimsical and funny in themselves, plus the unexpected sights you will see as you cruise along, not smoothly, let me assure you. The teacher in me can't resist pointing out the subtle nods to not making assumptions based on appearances, planning ahead, and adapting to situations as they evolve. Problems solving is definitely emphasized although, well, let's just say the goats don't necessarily excel at that. Bottom line, this is one I can envision grandparents loving to read to their grandchildren over and over, finding something new to enjoy each time. Thanks #TwoLions for allowing me this fun sneak peek at these goofy but adventurous goats. It was a fun read, both aloud and the times I kept flipping through to see what else I might see in the illustrations.

Goats afloat had great rhythm and rhyme. My kids loved the illustrations and the story was easy to follow. Great for reading aloud.

While this is too young for my middle school classroom, I will definitely buy this for my own children! It is funny, the text rhymes, it has great rhythm, and it has cute illustrations. I know my kids will love it!

The art was really cute and the rhymes were fun. I think it was silly enough my kids would have enjoyed it when they were little.

4 stars

This is a fun retelling of Three Billygoats Gruff. The illustrations are super whimsical and engaging. The text helps capture the movement of the story.

There are too many stories with bears and not enough with goats. My library will be purchasing this one.

I received and ARC of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This story is really cute. And the ending make me smile. All in all, pretty enjoyable. I felt that the rhythm of the words was really awkward, but I doubt kids will notice.

I am not sure what is better the story, the rhymes, or the artwork. This was a really fun book that I would have an amazing time reading at story time. xXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX