The Absentminded Fellow [Hardcover]

Samuel Marshak (Author), Marc Rosenthal (Illustrator), Richard Pevear (Translator)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up

"Leaping into a shirt and thrusting his arms into his pant legs, the Absentminded Fellow dashes out into the London streets, frantically hails a cab, rushes through the train station and right into an abandoned car. Three days later, to his surprise, he's still in London...This droll character portrait will quickly have listeners chiming in on the chorus."-Kirkus Reviews

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 4-This humorous story will leave readers chuckling. An absentminded fellow who lives on Portobello Road in London wakes up one morning, sticks his arms through the legs of his trousers, pushes his feet through his shirt sleeves, ties his shoe strings to one another, and dons an angora cat in place of a hat. In garbled nonsense language, he instructs a taxi driver to take him to the train station where, after attempting to purchase a ticket to Birmingham in a flower shop and caf?, he boards an abandoned train car. After falling asleep and waking three times in London instead of Birmingham, he concludes, "I was going to Birmingham,/But I came back instead!" As the man fumbles through his day, various characters call out in dialogue balloons, "Oh, that absentminded fellow from Portobello Road!" Listeners will naturally join in on the chant, making this an excellent participation story. The stylized, dapper artwork perfectly complements the bouncy, rhyming text. Rosenthal's illustrations and restrained color scheme recall the 1930s, and his characters would feel right at home in Popeye's world. Observant readers and listeners will discover subtle humorous touches throughout the book. Introduce this gleefully silly book to Edward Lear fans.
Shawn Brommer, Southern Tier Library System, Painted Post, NY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Translated from the Russian into rollicking verse, this droll character portrait will quickly have listeners chiming in on the chorus: ``Oh, that absentminded fellow from Portobello Road!'' Leaping into a shirt and thrusting his arms into his pant legs, the Absentminded Fellow dashes out into the London streets, frantically hails a cab (``Driver, stake me to the drain! Striver, brake me to the strain!''), rushes through the train station and right into an abandoned car. Three days later, to his surprise, he's still in London. Rosenthal's rubbery, Katzenjammer-Kids-style illustrations, replete with plewds, briffits, and amused onlookers, add a suitably madcap air to this wild, zany ride. (Picture book. 6-8) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); 1st edition (April 5, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374300135
• ISBN-13: 978-0374300135
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,909,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oz, April 20, 2001

By 

Oleg Zamsky (Leonia, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Absentminded Fellow (Hardcover)

This is the absolute masterpiece of Russian poetry for children. I was read this book since I was 1 year old. I was absolutely ecstatic to see one of my favorite book available in English. It is funny, entertaining and educational. What else can you ask from a book? If name of great Samuil Marshak does not tell you much, try it. It will after you finish reading.