The Quangle Wangle's Hat [Hardcover]

Edward Lear (Author), Louise Voce (Illustrator)

Book Description

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

The Quangle Wangle shares his enormous hat with a multiplying cast of peculiar creatures in this silly, singsong tale from the celebrated author of THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT.

On the top of the Crumpetty TreeThe Quangle Wangle sat,But his face you could not see,On account of his Beaver Hat.Poor Quangle Wangle. Life can get pretty lonely beneath a hat that's a hundred and two feet wide. But then along come Mr. and Mrs. Canary, who ask, "May we build a nest on your lovely Hat?" Following close behind are the Stork, the Duck, and the Owl, the Frog and the Fimble Fowl, the Pobble who has no toes, the Dong with a luminous nose. . . . Only classic nonsense poet Edward Lear could create such an odd and amiable crew -- enticingly rendered by Louise Voce in the most vivid of hues.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2 - Lear's nonsense verse lends itself beautifully to a visual treatment. The Quangle Wangle, a seemingly friendly large mammal, doesn't reveal his face because of his enormous hat, "…a hundred and two feet wide,/With ribbons and bibbons on every side." He's lonely up in his tree, but one day, as bright morning fades into afternoon, he is joined by a procession of fanciful creatures, from a "Fimble Fowl, with a Corkscrew leg" to "the Dong with a luminous nose." The poem closes in the starry night as the animals sing and dance under the "Mulberry moon." Voce's watercolors, with bright soft colors and supple lines, have a light comic touch that children will enjoy almost as much as Lear's classic wordplay and silliness. This book might also lend itself to classroom use, with kids making up their own animals. - Lauralyn Persson, Wilmette Public Library, IL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

PreS-Gr. 2. A creature known as the Quangle Wangle Quee sits atop the Crumpetty Tree wearing a lavishly decorated hat of prodigious proportions. To his satisfaction, a succession of real and fanciful animals come to frolic and build their homes on his hat. Like Voce's well-received interpretation of Lear's poem "The Owl and the Pussycat," this offers a series of paintings reflecting the genial tone of the poem. The ink drawings illustrate the verses with conviction as well as imagination, while watercolor washes enhance every scene with warm colors and subtle details. The large scale of the artwork makes the book a natural for reading aloud to groups as well as one-on-one sharing. A warm, childlike interpretation. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (February 3, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763612898
• ISBN-13: 978-0763612894
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 0.3 x 10.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,489,050 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars PLEASING STORY AND PLEASING ILLUSTRATIONS. KIDS LOVE IT., May 6, 2007

By 

D. Blankenship (The Ozarks) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Quangle Wangle's Hat (Hardcover)

A strange critter, the Quangle Wangle. Lives is a tree and is almost completely covered by a very strange hat. The Quangle Wangle is lonely but this is soon taken care of by a group of other strange critters who decide the hat is the ideal place to take up residents. There are several versons of this particular book out there using at least three different illustrators or artists. All are quite good, all contain the wonderful nonsense rhymes of th author, and I suppose it all boils down as to which version you were raised with as to which is your favorite. All are excellent reading, all have excellent illustrations. Just a warning though, if you purchase this book, be sure you purchase the one that you have in mind...it can be a bit confusing. Recommend this one highly.