Goal!

Title: Goal!
Author: Mina Javaherbin
Illustrator: A.G. Ford
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Medium: Oil
Theme: Make the best out of everything.
Summary: A group of boys got together to play soccer and they displayed power and unity among each other even when bullies arrive.
Literacy Elements:
Setting: The setting was set in only one location throughout the book and that was in an alley. It was not integral to the story because the story wasn’t about the setting but the setting played an important role in this book because it displayed what would really happen in this kind of situation. The book showed a setting they usually play in so it serves a purpose in this story but it is not integral to this story but it is also not the backdrop.
Style: A character in the story is telling it and we do not know his name. I think the style has a lot to do with poetry and rhyming because you could tell that the words are in order. This author uses a lot of repeating, and you could tell that throughout the story because there was a lot of repeating such as “We kick. We dribble. We run after our brilliant ball.”
Plot: This story does have its climax points but it does not take over the story because I felt that the rest of the story had the same amount of impact on me. It is not progressive at all because the climax went up a little bit when the bullies came but once they left, the climax went down so it is not progressive. I think the plot is really great because this book talks about situation that really needs our attention. This is a growing problem in this world and it needs to be addressed.
Characterization: There are not any main characters in this book but one character in the story was the narrator but his role in the book did not have that much of a difference comparing to other characters. The characters in the book are flat because they did not learn any lesson or anything like that. They just found a way to hide the better soccer ball away from the bullies. The odd thing is that throughout the book, the narrator introduced other characters but remained mum on what his name is. All of the characters came from the same community, and they all had the same age so it is really comfortable for them until the bullies arrived. I think this book is a great demonstration that bullying does happen everywhere.
Evaluation: I think this book is a GREAT exposure to young children because it displayed different factors such as race, bullying, poverty and so on. I think this is a book that would promote diversity among the classroom so I think this book is a great book to have on your bookshelf in a classroom. I loved how the story seemed so real even though this book is not based on true events but it feels like that so many children can relate to this book for so many different reasons.