Starred Review Something big is happening at a small Manhattan apartment building. Kid and her parents are newly arrived from Toronto for a few months' stay to look after a relative's dog and be in the city as Kid's mom mounts an off-Broadway musical. What makes this building unique in a skyscraper-filled metropolis isn't its architecture but the simple fact that there is a mountain goat living on its roof. When rumor of its existence makes its way to Kid, she grows determined to catch a glimpse of the creature, as a sighting is said to bring seven years' good luck d her parents could use some good fortune. With her new friend Will, whose parents died in the Twin Towers, Kid begins to canvas the building for information about the goat, facing personal challenges in the process and setting in motion a chain of events that neatly links the residents' individual lives into a shared narrative. Fleming manages to accomplish an astonishing amount of storytelling in this slender novel, shifting the point of view among Kid, four tenants, and, most wonderfully, the goat, who dreams of leaving his "sad little mountain" and gamboling in Central Park. With delicate insight and humor, Fleming cleverly unites people d goats om vastly different walks of life in an offbeat celebration of courage and individuality.

There's a goat living on the roof of a New York City apartment building—or is it merely an urban legend?White Toronto native Kid and her parents arrive in the city, where they will live in a cousin's apartment and take care of his dog, Cat, while he is away. Her mom is a scattered, nervous actor who will be appearing in an off-Broadway play that she created. Cousin Doug leaves them a detailed book describing every possible facet of Cat's care and all the people with whom he interacts. Kid feels generally "paralyzed by shyness" except when she is safe in her "family bubble," but she finds herself welcomed by Cat's friends. Brown-skinned Will, whose parents were killed in the twin towers, speaks in Spoonerisms, and is afraid to look out of windows, tells Kid about the goat. Together they are determined to find it, and while involved in their quest, they lose some of their fears. Fleming has created delightfully eccentric and warmhearted characters that exist in a close-knit community in lovely, accurately described New York City venues. The delightfully named, multiply diverse tenants in the building have interesting back stories and are given a turn at expressing their viewpoints. Even the goat tells of his hunger and longings. The convoluted, intricate tale is filled with joy, sweet sadness, and a triumph of spirit. Lovely. (Fiction. 9-12)

Eleven-year-old Kid is fascinated by a mountain goat living on the roof of her Manhattan apartment building. Though she is painfully shy, things start changing for Kid when she makes a new friend, Will, who lost his parents on 9/11. The story offers insight into life's obstacles through the viewpoints of characters of all ages; it's also an affectionate and quirky ode to Manhattan.

There's a goat living on the roof of a New York City apartment building—or is it merely an urban legend?White Toronto native Kid and her parents arrive in the city, where they will live in a cousin's apartment and take care of his dog, Cat, while he is away. Her mom is a scattered, nervous actor who will be appearing in an off-Broadway play that she created. Cousin Doug leaves them a detailed book describing every possible facet of Cat's care and all the people with whom he interacts. Kid feels generally "paralyzed by shyness" except when she is safe in her "family bubble," but she finds herself welcomed by Cat's friends. Brown-skinned Will, whose parents were killed in the twin towers, speaks in Spoonerisms, and is afraid to look out of windows, tells Kid about the goat. Together they are determined to find it, and while involved in their quest, they lose some of their fears. Fleming has created delightfully eccentric and warmhearted characters that exist in a close-knit community in lovely, accurately described New York City venues. The delightfully named, multiply diverse tenants in the building have interesting back stories and are given a turn at expressing their viewpoints. Even the goat tells of his hunger and longings. The convoluted, intricate tale is filled with joy, sweet sadness, and a triumph of spirit. Lovely. (Fiction. 9-12)

When Toronto native Kid arrives in New York City with her parents to spend several months looking after a cousin-s dog, she expects to see new and unusual things, but the rumor of a goat living atop their building seems farfetched, even for Manhattan. But a goat is indeed there, and adult author Fleming (Gay Dwarves of America) uses humorous