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Joseph Had a Little Overcoat (Caldecott Medal Book) (Hardcover)
by Simms Taback
| Category:
Education, Picture books, Baby-Preschool, Age 4-8 |
| Market price: ¥ 178.00
MSL price:
¥ 168.00
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| Stock:
In Stock |
MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
A beautifully illustrated book with a wonderfully meaningful and touching story that has a moral importance to rember for children and adults. A must buy! |
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Author: Simms Taback
Publisher: Viking Juvenile; Library Binding edition
Pub. in: January, 1999
ISBN: 0670878553
Pages: 32
Measurements: 10.6 x 8.9 x 0.4 inches
Origin of product: USA
Order code: BC00353
Other information: ISBN-13: 978-0670878550
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- Awards & Credential -
Winner of the prestigous Caldecott Honor Medal. This book was first published in 1977 and is now in its 4th edition. |
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- MSL Picks -
In Simms Taback's, Joseph had a Little Overcoat, Joseph teaches a simple moral lesson to the reader about being resourceful and thrifty. Throughout the book, Joseph makes his overcoat into many different pieces of clothing. He begins with his overcoat becoming a jacket. He then makes a vest out of his jacket, a scarf out of his vest, a necktie out of his scarf, a handkerchief out of his necktie, and then a button out of his handkerchief. In the end, Joseph writes a book about making something out of nothing. He proves to the reader that you can make something out of very little.
Taback, also the illustrator, uses watercolor, pencil, ink, and color patchwork collages to illustrate this Caldecott award winning children's book. Many illustrations consist of clippings from magazines and photographs. This paints a realistic picture. Pictures of real coffee cups and saucers are arranged on a shelf that Taback drew. This technique is also used in the rugs on Joseph's floor. Taback has drawn the rugs but placed photos of real pieces of a rug into his drawing. This is such a unique and innovative characteristic of Taback's illustrations. The colors that Taback chose to use are very vivid, primary colors. This may represent the simpleness of Joseph's life. Taback also uses "cut-outs" to illustrate to the reader how Joseph's overcoat becomes different articles of clothing. Each time this occurs, the "cut-outs" get smaller, to show each different piece of clothing that Joseph is wearing. On each page of this book, Taback illustrates various aspects of the life of a Jewish peasant. Jewish life in Poland is visible to the reader through pictures of farm animals, various fruits and vegetables, the minora, Jewish proverbs, motza crackers, and hot tea with lemon. Each of these symbolize Joseph's culture. Taback also convinces the reader that music is a prominent part of the Yiddish culture. One illustration of this shows Joseph dancing at his nephew's wedding, while musicians play. There is another example showing Joseph singing in the men's chorus. In both of these illustrations, Joseph appears to be enjoying the music. It is also evident that Joseph's family and community are a central part of his life. This is a characteristic of the Yiddish culture. Many illustrations in this book have a Jewish proverb hanging on the wall. One proverb says "What one has, one doesn't want, and what one wants, one doesn't have." This indicates a society that is not materialistic. Another proverb simply states, "Better to have an ugly patch than a beautiful hole." Again, thriftiness and simplicity are valued. Pictures of different individuals, such as Moishe, the Melamed, the Rebbe, and Molly Picon, are hanging on the walls of Joseph's home. These individuals must have a special meaning to Joseph and are a part of his culture.
Another interesting part of the book is the trip that Joseph takes to the city. Taback illustrates Joseph in his finest clothing. This may show that he does not leave his community often and he only does so on special occasions. Finally, this book captures your attention by the simple moral lesson presented. The book shares information on a culture many people are not familiar with. This simple story promotes cultural diversity along with an ethical message.
(From quoting Kristen Knight, USA)
Target readers:
This book works best for kids age 4-8, but is also good for kids of other age groups, including adults for its moral lessons.
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- Better with -
Better with
Make Way for Ducklings (Viking Kestrel Picture Books)
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Simms Taback has illustrated many books for young readers, including the 1997 Caldecott Honor Book There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly. He lives in Willow, New York.
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From Publishers Weekly
As in his Caldecott Honor book, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, Taback's inventive use of die-cut pages shows off his signature artwork, here newly created for his 1977 adaptation of a Yiddish folk song. This diverting, sequential story unravels as swiftly as the threads of Joseph's well-loved, patch-covered plaid coat. A flip of the page allows children to peek through to subsequent spreads as Joseph's tailoring produces items of decreasing size. The author puts a droll spin on his narrative when Joseph loses the last remnant of the coatAa buttonAand decides to make a book about it. "Which shows... you can always make something out of nothing," writes Taback, who wryly slips himself into his story by depicting Joseph creating a dummy for the book that readers are holding. Still, it's the bustling mixed-media artwork, highlighted by the strategically placed die-cuts, that steals the show. Taback works into his folk art a menagerie of wide-eyed animals witnessing the overcoat's transformation, miniature photographs superimposed on paintings and some clever asides reproduced in small print (a wall hanging declares, "Better to have an ugly patch than a beautiful hole"; a newspaper headline announces, "Fiddler on Roof Falls off Roof"). With its effective repetition and an abundance of visual humor, this is tailor-made for reading aloud.
(MSL quote)
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| View all 7 comments |
Paula Johnson (MSL quote), USA
<2007-02-08 00:00>
In this story, Joseph has an overcoat that is worn and old. He makes the overcoat into a jacket. As the story progresses, the jacket becomes a vest. The vest becomes a scarf. The scarf becomes a necktie. The necktie becomes a handkerchief. The handkerchief becomes a button. In the end, the button is lost. Joseph writes a book about his overcoat down to his lost button. He claims that you can take nothing and make something.
The pages in the book have cut-outs. Children can use their imagination and guess what Joseph will make next. There is more to this story than the text itself. The reader should look at the illustrations and read the newspaper clippings. There are several cultural items in the illustrations that a teacher could use to discuss the culture. I truly enjoyed this book.
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A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-02-08 00:00>
Poor Joseph works on a farm and wears a little overcoat that is old and worn. It becomes so old and worn that Joseph has to cut and sew it into a jacket, but then the jacket becomes old and worn and Joseph turns it into a vest. And so on and so forth until Joseph learns that you can always make something out of nothing.
There really isn't a whole lot of story here. However, what the book is full of are brilliantly bright colors and inside Yiddish-cultural references. Each page of the book is filled with vivid colors that draw one's eyes all over the page like a motion picture, hoping not to miss a single thing. The book strongly appeals to children because of this color scheme and also because of the cutouts on every other page that allow children an opportunity to guess what Joseph will make next.
However, as delightful as children will find this book, adults with a background in Jewish culture might find it even more enjoyable than children do. On almost every page there are pictures, tiny letters, miniature newspapers, illustrations, etc. that allude to Jewish culture. I admit that I don't know very much about the Jewish culture, but was able to figure out a few of the references. I particularly was amused by the tiny hand-written letter and newspapers that had English headlines but the rest of the story was written in Hebrew. I think someone who could actually read Hebrew would appreciate things like that even more. This edition of the story also includes the lyrics and music to a song the author adapted, "I Had a Little Overcoat". Thanks, Simms Taback!
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E. Bird (MSL quote), USA
<2007-02-08 00:00>
Ever feel like you're too ignorant to read a picture book? For example, when you pick up Joseph Had a Little Overcoat, do you understand all the references the book's pictures make? If not, can you truly say you understand the nature of the book itself? These were the questions I had to ask myself after reading author Simms Taback's fabulous retelling of the Yiddish folk song, "I Had a Little Overcoat" (Hob Ich Mir a Mantl). The book is a crazy conglomeration of mixed media, die-cut pictures, and steady inside jokes for the well informed parent. Photographs, Hebrew script, and pen & ink abound in this colorful cacophony. I just wish I was smart enough to get all its jokes and references.
The plot, such as it is, is pretty straightforward. There's Joseph, just an average guy living in a shetl. When the book begins he has a long overcoat that's grown ratty around its edges. Quick thinking Joseph turns it into a jacket and goes to a fair. Then the jacket gets worn so it's quickly converted into a vest for when Joseph dances at his nephew's wedding. You get the picture. By the end, Joseph has whittled his former overcoat down to a mere button which he then loses. Is that the end of it? Not on your life. "So Joseph made a book about it. Which shows... you can always make something out of nothing".
The book uses a clever die-cut technique to give our hero's rapidly shrinking wardrobe a neat page to page continuation. Therefore, a page with a vest cut into it slips easily over a former picture of Joseph wearing his jacket of the same fabric. And so on. The illustrations are in a bright and colorful style, filled to overflowing with reds, greens, blues, and oranges. The scenes themselves are set in a kind of "Fiddler On the Roof" setting. In fact, there are multiple references in the pictures to Sholom Aleichem and his "Tevye der Milkhiker" (Tevye the Milkman) on which "Fiddler" was based. In addition there are references to people like Molly Picon, Mendele Mocher S'forim, and I. L. Peretz. The book is set up in such a way that a reader can pore over each detail and individual element for long periods of time. Kids who read it will discover new tiny intricacies that they may have missed in prior readings. Of course, who knows how many will get the references? Aside from Sholom Aleichem and a framed print of Sigmund Freud, I was as clueless as they come. Reading this book, I had the distinct feeling that my knowledge of Jewish history and culture is sorely lacking. But that's okay. The important thing is that this book is rife with life, energy, and a style completely of its own. It's a joy to read.
Would I necessarily have given this book the Caldecott Award it eventually received? Put my answer down as "maybe". It's hard to say. The book itself is interesting and each page an entirely new creation. I imagine it will not be to everyone's tastes. Just give it a try when you've a chance. If you'd like a picture book that displays a kind of Jewish storytelling with life and energy, Joseph Had a Little Overcoat is your best bet.
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Kristi Rice (MSL quote), USA
<2007-02-08 00:00>
The Caldecott award winning Joseph Had a Little Overcoat is a delightful children's book. In this story, author Simms Taback uses simple words to tell a tale about how you can take what little you have, and make a lot out of it. Joseph starts out with an overcoat, but his coat gets tattered and torn. Then he decides to downsize to a jacket. Without revealing the plot, I will tell you that Taback does an outstanding job describing the history of Joseph and that overcoat. He takes the reader through some interesting moments in Joseph's life without getting too complicated for a small child to understand. The art used in this book is in a word...phenomenal! The colorful objects, usual cut outs, and wonderful patterns are sure to keep a little one interested during storytime. This is one of my favorite children's books and a well worthy award winner! I would recommend this book to any parents, children, or anyone of any age. It kept my attention and it is sure to keep yours.
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