Madeline Pop-up Book (Viking Kestrel picture books) [Hardcover]

Ludwig Bemelmans (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Viking Kestrel picture books

With its lively verse, beautiful scenes of Paris, and fun-filled action spreads, the pop-up edition of Madeline will delight children who meet her for the first time--and enchant those who already love her. Full-color illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As with last year's pop-up version of Beatrix Potter's Two Bad Mice, this book seems born to the form. A spread showing "the old house in Paris" has lift-open windows so that the "twelve little girls in two straight lines" can be viewed; Madeline leans forward to "pooh-pooh" the zoo tiger and teeters on the wall "to frighten Miss Clavel." When Miss Clavel turns on her light, readers can pull the tab and banish the darkness. And Madeline's hospital stay, with movable doll carriage and a tossable ball, looks enviable indeed. With all the bustling in these pages and tabs to tug, the book will immerse both old fans and new readers in the joys of knowing Madeline. Ages 3-8.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-K Horror of horrors! A pop-up book based on an all time favoriteLudwig Bemelman's classic Madeline. Yet admittedly, it is rather fun to pull a tab and see Madeline pooh-pooh the tiger in the zoo, or Miss Clavel turn on her light, or the doctor carry Madeline in his arm in a blanket safe and warm. Madeline herself would be delighted. All of the favorite scenes are here. The only scenes missing are the beginning illustrations of the 12 little girls in 2 straight lines breaking their bread, brushing their teeth, going to bed, and smiling at the good and frowning at the bad. While pop-up books may not withstand extended circulation, librarians who work with the very young in story hours will find this book a wonderful way to introduce children to Madeline and her world. Pamela K. Bomboy, Chesterfield County Pub . Schools, Va.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 12 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile; 1st edition (September 30, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670816671
• ISBN-13: 978-0670816675
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #914,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ludwig Bemelmans (April 27, 1898-October 1, 1962), Austro-American essayist, humorist, novelist, artist, and author of books for children, was born in Meran, in the Tyrol, in territory that was then Austrian and is now Italian. In 1914, he arrived in New York with letters of introduction to managers of several large hotels. Having worked his way up to a position as a waiter at the Ritz-Carlton, he left to enlist in the United States Army in 1917. Eventually he opened his own restaurant; only in 1934 did he turn to writing, at the suggestion of a friend in publishing who, noticing the whimsical paintings with which he covered the walls of his apartment, urged him to undertake a children's book. Hansi, the first of Bemelmans' fifteen books for children, beguiled most reviewers with its simple watercolor illustrations and nostalgic story of two children and their dog in the Austrian Tyrol. His greatest success, however, was Madeline, a rhymed picture book about a Parisian schoolgirl who becomes the envy of her classmates when her appendix is removed. Indeed, the Madeline books, of which there were five, remain the work that Bemelmans is primarily remembered for. The inspired amateurishness of the illustrations and the sophisticated doggerel verses have been an influence on later juvenile literature. Madeline's Rescue, the second book in the series, was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1953. Bemelmans claimed to have no imagination, and all his books were the more or less direct product of his experience. He described his life as a restaurateur in Life Class and Hotel Splendide, his travels to Ecuador and Italy in The Donkey Inside and Italian Holiday, and his stint as a Hollywood screenwriter in the novel Dirty Eddie. At the time of his death he was working on the story of his childhood. Bemelmans was a genial satirist and lover of life, but a serious intent often underlay his humor, especially in his novels. A case in point is Blue Danube, a fanciful story set on an island of the Danube, the comedy of which is very much clouded by the appearance of a band of odious Nazis. A somewhat more successful novel was Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, concerning the unusual journey of an elderly Ecuadorian general from his villa in Biarritz to his home in South America. From the time of his marriage to Madeline Freund in 1935 (they had one daughter, Barbara) until his death in New York of pancreatic cancer, Bemelmans traveled, painted, and generally wrote a book or two a year. Reviewing his posthumous novel, the comic love story The Street Where the Heart Lies, Burling Lowrey in Saturday Review called Bemelmans "a superb craftsman with a sure eye for atmospheric detail and a supremely accurate ear for the speech of Adult Innocents madly in love with the unattainable.. . He was a complete original, with an absolutely unique temperament and view toward the world."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The courage of the young, December 30, 2000

By 

Luan Gaines "luansos" (Dana Point, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Madeline Pop-up Book (Viking Kestrel picture books) (Hardcover)

This book was purchased for my 3 yr old granddaughter for Christmas, as she had already fallen in love with Madeline, and especially Miss Clavell. Each page not only pops up, but also has pull tabs to allow the figures movement. A favorite part is when Madeline goes to the hospital to have her appendix removed, murmuring, "I can do anything. I can do anything..." What better praise that when my graddaughter had to go to the hospital over Christmas, and, afraid, she closed her eyes and said, "I can do anything. I can do anything..." Happily back home, she asks me to read this favorite book to her every day, a little girl who found courage from another little girl, Madeline.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My 18 month old loves it, can I ask for more?, January 12, 2007

By 

C. Boaz "yorkiefurio" (Dickinson, TX) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Madeline Pop-up Book (Viking Kestrel picture books) (Hardcover)

This is a great book. My 18 month old loves all the pop ups and interactive pull tabs. Of course I have to do it for him but he loves seeing it. He also loves the rhyming of the story. I have not read the original but I have heard this is a shorter, condensed version which is fine with me. Most kids this age won't sit through a long drawn out story. Would highly recommend.

3.0 out of 5 stars great - but abbreviated, August 29, 2006

By 

tekc "tekc" (Alexandria, VA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madeline Pop-up Book (Viking Kestrel picture books) (Hardcover)

The pop-ups are adorable, and my 16 month old loves the book. But I did not realize that they story would be so abbreviated. It is just a few cute passages from the Madeline story, not the entire book. If you know the entire story, this pieced together snippets version will annoy you.