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Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business
 
 
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Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business (Paperback)

by Esphyr Slobodkina (Author, Illustrator) "Once there was a peddler who sold caps..." (more)
4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (77 customer reviews)

List Price: $6.99
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Frequently Bought Together

Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business + Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs + Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Price For All Three: $21.97

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  • This item: Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business by Esphyr Slobodkina

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  • Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett

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  • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Subtitled A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business, this absurd and very simple story has become a classic, selling hundreds of thousands of copies since its first publication in 1940. A peddler walks around selling caps from a tall, tottering pile on his head. Unable to sell a single cap one morning, he walks out into the countryside, sits down under a tree, checks that all the caps are in place, and falls asleep. When he wakes up, the caps are gone--and the tree is full of cap-wearing monkeys. His attempts to get the caps back generate the kind of repetitive rhythm that 3- and 4-year-olds will adore. (Preschool and older) --Richard Farr --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review
"From an old folk tale [the author] has fashioned this bright picture book, infusing it with a humor which seems to have sprung from her own hearty enjoyment of the troubles of a peddler with a abnd of monkeys."" --The New York Times

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Product Details

  • Reading level: Ages 4-8
  • Paperback: 48 pages
  • Publisher: HarperCollins (September 4, 1987)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0064431436
  • ISBN-13: 978-0064431439
  • Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.8 x 0.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (77 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,676 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

    #1 in  Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Multicultural Stories > Hispanic & Latino
    #3 in  Books > Children's Books > Animals > Apes & Monkeys > Fiction
    #20 in  Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > Classics

Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
Once there was a peddler who sold caps. Read the first page
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business
66% buy the item featured on this page:
Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business 4.8 out of 5 stars (77)
$6.99
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
11% buy
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 4.7 out of 5 stars (202)
$6.99
Harold and the Purple Crayon 50th Anniversary Edition (Purple Crayon Books)
8% buy
Harold and the Purple Crayon 50th Anniversary Edition (Purple Crayon Books) 4.8 out of 5 stars (169)
$6.99
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
8% buy
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day 4.5 out of 5 stars (200)
$7.99

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Customer Reviews

77 Reviews
5 star:
 (66)
4 star:
 (7)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (77 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A true keeper, September 8, 2001
This adorable story is simple enough to read to infants under the age of one. By the time they are two, children can easily memorize it and begin to distinguish words on the page.

It is particularly delightful for young children, who can identify both with the peddler's nap and his anger at the monkeys in a tree, who have stolen his caps.

Altogether, the story is pure joy. Your copy is sure to wear out before your children reach the age of five, as ours did. Alyssa A. Lappen

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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Tsz tsz tsz., January 10, 2004
A folktale fastforwarded to 1940. In this fine lighthearted little yarn, author Esphyr Slobodkina reinvigorates the folk tradition with a marvelous story. In it, a peddler looses his hats to a tree of 16 chattering monkeys and must find a way to get them back. There is no overwhelming complexity in the text of this tale, but sixty-some years after its original publication there is still great charm in its words. Accompanying the staid story is a series of brightly colored illustrations. The peddler seen here is not your classic workaday schmoe in dirty clothes and a five-o-clock shadow. He is prim and pristine. With a moustache like Hercule Poirot's, a smart black suit, and a pair of cheerful red spats he is a picture of competence and sterility. Which makes his eventual foot-stomping, fist-shaking temper tantrum at the mischievous monkeys all the more amusing. I was particularly taken with the monkeys response to the peddler's demands. All they say is, "Tsz, tsz, tsz". Who knew we shared this phrase with our simian kin? Slobodkina has created a precise little tale. Though she never says it, sixteen caps sit atop the peddler's head (his preferred method of peddling his wares, doncha know) and sixteen monkey pinch them. The combination of bright colors, funny monkeys, and the dapper little peddler man make this a real treasure of 1940s children's literature.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars You need this one if you teach K or 1st Grade!, June 8, 2001
By A Customer
Caps For Sale is a wonderful tale that students love to read. It is an ideal book for shared reading and offers opportunities for students to learn about the structure of a good story. Slobodkina's story of a peddler trying to sell his wares in a small town has a clear beginning, middle, and end. You need this one if you would like children to learn how to make predictions, recognize patterns, sequence events, and notice setting elements. This book is a "must have" classic in any K and 1st grade classroom.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars great book, recommend it
my daughter loves this book and I remember enjoying it as a child as well. Fun loving and a good read.
Published 3 months ago by Ming

2.0 out of 5 stars My child loves this book
My 4 year old son has loved this book since he was 3 and continues to ask me to read it for him to this day. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mother of a Preschooler

5.0 out of 5 stars silly story the children love
this is a book i had read a long time ago and just finally bought my own copy for my classroom. It gets read alot!
Published 6 months ago by Lora M. Bailin

5.0 out of 5 stars Caps for Sale is a must have.
My read this to me and I still remember it still almost 25 years later.
Published 6 months ago by paulstuffy

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful through the generations
My father remembers reading this book when he was a child and now my daughter has become a fan. It's an adorable book with a simple story. I recommend it.
Published 6 months ago by Sophie's Mom

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow...timewarp
Seeing this book for sale brought me back to when I was a kid. I have the hardcover from back in the late 70's. After all this time it sticks out a one of my favorites. Read more
Published 6 months ago by H. Rieck

5.0 out of 5 stars Me and my 2.5 year old son love this book
This is a great book for kids, even young ones around 2.5 years old. It's an engaging story and my son loves the part where the man wakes up to find his hats gone, and looks up... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Cathy

5.0 out of 5 stars love this book
I loved this book as a child and I love sharing it with my children.
Published 10 months ago by Kelly P. Hensen

5.0 out of 5 stars Rutgers University Project on Economics and Children
Years ago, a unique peddler stood out from other salespeople because he carried all his goods on top of his head. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Yana V. Rodgers

5.0 out of 5 stars Childhood favorite is now my child's favorite
This is one of the few books I remember my elementary school librarian reading to us during my childhood. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Denali

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