''Goggles!'' is 1969 children's picture book by American author and illustrator Ezra Jack Keats published by the Penguin Group in 1998. The book is about two boys finding motorcycle goggles. ''Goggles'' won a

Caldecott Honor The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service ...

in 1970. The illustrations consist of mellow colors created using Keats' signature style of a combination of painting and collage.

Plot

Peter, the main character, and his friend Archie find motorcycle

goggles Goggles, or safety glasses, are forms of protective eyewear that usually enclose or protect the area surrounding the eye in order to prevent particulates, water or chemicals from striking the eyes. They are used in chemistry laboratories and ...

near their hideout. They encounter some "big boys" that want to take the goggles. They get a surprise from Peter's dog and end the day safe with the goggles.

Characters

:Peter: A young boy who found goggles. :Archie: A young friend of Peter who goes through the journey of getting the goggles back. :Willie: Peter's dog who helps the two friends out.

Critical reception

Kirkus ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, non ...

, which does not provide the names of its reviewers, gave ''Goggles!'' a lukewarm review, describing it as overly simple and less appealing than previous Peter books. The Kirkus review states, "For what amounts, then, to an everyday little boy escapade, Ezra Jack Keats' stunning collages are overqualified—which is another way of saying they're wasted. Except of course that they give you something to look at when you haven't much to think about." Additionally, Ray Anthony Shepard included ''Goggles!'', then Keats' most recent book, in a comparison of Keats' work to that of Black author John Steptoe, viewing ''Goggles!'' as the most extreme example of how a white outsider views Black communities: "The drawings for Goggles show Peter's world as if seen from inside a locked car with windows rolled up tight. Every illustration shout 'Look, see, we're in a ghetto.' By now, Peter's mommy has disappeared, and Peter and Archie are fighting to survive against a gang of older boys in an economically deprived world." The item over which Peter, Archie, and the older boys are fighting, however, is a pair of motorcycle goggles, more an object of fun than a daily necessity, so Shepard's description of the characters "fighting to survive" in an "economically deprived world" is not necessarily accurate. In 1974, the book was made into a film narrated by

Geoffrey Holder Geoffrey Lamont Holder (August 1, 1930 – October 5, 2014) was a Trinidadian-American actor, dancer, musician, director, choreographer, and artist. He was a principal dancer for the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, before his film career began in 19 ...

and produced by

Weston Woods Studios Weston Woods Studios (or simply Weston Woods) is an American production company that makes audio and short films based on well-known books for children. It was founded in 1953 by Morton Schindel in Weston, Connecticut, and named after the wooded ...

References

1969 children's books American picture books Books by Ezra Jack Keats Sequel books Caldecott Honor–winning works African-Americans in literature {{child-book-stub