The Owl and the Pussy-Cat [Hardcover]

Edward Lear (Author), Ian Beck (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1996 | Age Level: 4 and up

The Owl and the Pussy-Cat travel away for a year and a day so that they may wed and, soon after, dance with happiness by the light of the moon, in a lively rendition of Lear's nonsense poem, enhanced with amusing, full-color illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This version of Lear's popular poem is distinguished by its very Victorian but unfussy illustrations, which focus not only on the familiar lovestruck pair, but on their very model of a Grand Tour. After festively boarding a luxurious "pea-green" boat decorated with gilded carvings, the couple--together with assorted animal families--ride gondolas, sail past the Statue of Liberty and land on a tropical island where passengers and crew celebrate their nuptials. In Todd's masterful renditions, these elegant, genteel settings and costumes are almost photographic in their clarity. Models of propriety abound: sumptuous teas are served, and guests gather for a shipboard musicale where the owl "sang to a small guitar." The dapper creature is resplendent in a plaid deerstalker cap and (later) in tails with blue spats, while his perfectly beguiling mate dazzles with her lace bustles and parasols. Detailed without being cluttered, the illustrations are inventive without stretching the text too far in this perfectly satisfying variation on an old favorite. All ages.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-Beck's rendition of Lear's beloved nonsense poem is a soft watercolored adventure just right for little ones drifting off to sleep. The artist's version begins with end papers showing a map of the journey "to the land where the Bong-tree grows." The emphasis is on scenes of the night sky and lapping blue waves as the pair sail away in their pea-green boat. Lear's lyrical language is infectious even when one has no idea of what a runcible spoon might be. Beck's owl and pussy-cat lack the individual character shown in Jan Brett's interpretation (Putnam, 1991). They're more generic here, but Beck puts them in cozy background settings. The pages are well designed; the type for the line, "They sailed away for a year and a day" waves across the bottom of a double-page spread set with small ovals for each month and filled with illustrations of the pair's changing activities and weather. Certainly worthy of a spot in most collection, even for libraries having Brett's lovely version.
Judith Gloyer, Milwaukee Public Library
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Atheneum; 1st edition (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689810326
• ISBN-13: 978-0689810329
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,482,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars the preview does not match the book, July 27, 2009

By 

mb - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Owl and the Pussy-Cat (Paperback)

The "Look Inside" preview shows an edition with illustrations by Paul Galdone. However, the edition of this particular book has illustrations by Ian Beck. This is not obvious if you are not paying close attention.

Amazon engineers, you need to change this preview!! Your customers can google to get the poem if they are not familiar with it. Showing a children's book that is illustrated by a different illustrator is misleading!

NOTE: my rating is for the misleading preview, not for the book itself!!