Louie [Library Binding]

Ezra Jack Keats (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Louie never talked until Susie and Roberto introduced him to the puppet Gussie. "The harsh unloveliness of inner-city streets is forgotten in the brilliant paintings, which form a backdrop for a tender story of spontaneous unselfishness."--Horn Book

Editorial Reviews

Review

The harsh unloveliness of inner-city streets is forgotten in the brilliant paintings, which form a backdrop for a tender story of spontaneous unselfishness. (The Horn Book) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Ezra Jack Keats's luminous paintings of city life and his unerring sense of the truly important dramas of childhood have been enchanting children for years. He began his career in children's books by illustrating other people's texts, but after a number of years decided to write his own. This decision gave him the freedom to circumvent the contrivance and rigidity he sometimes found in the texts he illustrated. His first attempt, The Snowy Day, was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1963, and the books that followed won numerous awards and distinctions, including a Caldecott Honor.

In 1965 Mr. Keats was a contributing artist to UNICEF, and in 1973 the children's reading room of the Warrensville Public Library in Ohio was named after him. In 1974 he presided as the guest of honor at the opening of a children's roller-skating rink in Tokyo, Japan. The rink, which has a plaque bearing his name, was built in response to the enthusiasm for roller skating sparked by his book Skates!

Mr. Keats grew up in a tenement apartment in Brooklyn and began painting at a very early age, with the indulgent approval of his mother. He taught himself how to paint, using whatever materials he could find. One of the first times he received some paint...[there were] just a few colors, two of which were blue and white-and I covered a board with my blue paint. I dipped my brush into the white paint and dabbed it onto the board, shook the brush a little and let it trail off. I stepped back and got the greatest thrill I can remember. I saw a little cloud floating across a blue sky. It was very real to me, and I'll always remember it. What a tremendous feeling of gratification, to havecreated something like this! Even today, when I look up and see a tiny cloud floating across the sky with little wispy ends trailing off, I think of that time."

A recognized painter in his own right, Mr. Keats had his work displayed in some of the finest art collections in America. His books appear in seventeen languages, and a movie adaptation of The Snowy Day won a prize at the Venice Film Festival.

Ezra Jack Keats died in 1983. His manuscripts, original art, and correspondence are now in the outstanding De Grummond Collection of children's literature at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Library Binding: 32 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books (August 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688023835
• ISBN-13: 978-0688023836
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 8.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,056,919 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet, charming, lovely, and utterly priceless, March 25, 2000

By 

Andrea Johnston (Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Louie (Library Binding)

Louie is a precious tale of a boy who finds a puppet friend. This charming encounter softly captures the unmeasurable love of a boy and his friend. Their adventures are an enchanting remembrence of how important childhood friends are. I give it two thumbs up!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Book about a Special Kid!, November 4, 2004

By 

Lynn Ellingwood "The ESOL Teacher" (Webster, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Louie (Hardcover)

A child who rarely speaks and is different from his classmates finds a puppet friend to talk to. His peers are surprised at his reaction but find a way to deal with him and make him happy. What a sweet book about treating people decently.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars First autism book?, May 30, 2011

By 

PSB (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Louie (Paperback)

It's amazing how prescient this book is. To those of us with children on the spectrum, it's obvious Louie has some form of autism, and it's just impressive how forward thinking Keats was to write about it in 1975(!) when nobody even acknowledged the condition. I love the subtle way he presents Louie's differences and the other kids reactions to them. Very true to life. As far as the storyline goes, it's not that exciting, but any book written for children who are a bit different is fine by me!