Mad about Madeline (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Anna Quindlen (Introduction) "In an old house in Paris..." (more)
Key Phrases: Miss Clavel, The Gypsy Mama, Spanish Ambassador

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This elegant volume--perhaps one of the best gift books on the planet--contains all six adventures of the irrepressible, mischievous Madeline (the smallest and spunkiest of the twelve little girls in two straight lines). Ludwig Bemelmans's Madeline was first published in 1939, and its five sequels have all become classics. In Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Anna Quindlen's introduction to Mad About Madeline she writes, "Amid a childhood full of children's books, amid glorious pictures and imaginative plots, it is worth wondering why this story is among a handful of books that now-grown children invariably buy for their own more than half a century after Ludwig Bemelmans began writing it on the back of a restaurant menu."

Inside this hefty, richly illustrated edition, you'll find Madeline, Madeline and the Bad Hat, Madeline's Rescue, Madeline and the Gypsies, Madeline in London, and Madeline's Christmas, in addition to Quindlen's splendidly insightful introduction, an essay by Bemelmans on how he invented Madeline, never-before-published working sketches of Madeline, and photos of the Bemelmans family. The perfect gift for anyone who has made friends with--or should be introduced to--the precocious Madeline. (The jaunty verse makes Madeline perfect for reading aloud, and readers ages 6 and older will enjoy sounding out names such as Lord Cucuface.)

Product Description

All of the classic Madeline sotires--in one handsome volume.

For sixty years, Madeline's adventures have enthralled her ever-growing audience. Now all six Madeline books have been collected in one volume. Every well-loved word and picture is here, in a book that will be a treasured addition to any child's collection.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 316 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile; 1st edition (October 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670851876
• ISBN-13: 978-0670851874
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #626,460 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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

  #21 in	Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( Q ) > Quindlen, Anna
  #23 in	Books > Children's Books > Popular Characters > Book Characters > Madeline
  #28 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( B ) > Bemelmans, Ludwig

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Our first choice EVERY night!, January 6, 1999

By A Customer

Our two little girls, three and two years old, LOVE Madeline. Daddy reads them one story each night -- they always get to pick which. For Christmas they got two new books which are still almost unread, since every night they want Madeline! The stories are exciting, but gentle and sweet; they are moral but not preachy. And the poetry is wonderful! Also the stories are not too long for a tired parent's voice at bedtime. But with only two little ones of my own, I wonder how DOES Miss Clavel keep TWELVE little girls in two straight lines?

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My two-year old daughter is hooked already., March 20, 2001

By	Jean B. Occhialini "jocchialini" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

My daughter had seen a couple of Madeline videos (including Madeline's Resuce) and really enjoyed them, so I decided to purchase this book. Well, after only having it for a week and a half, she is pulling it off her bookshelf and asking me to read it to her. The sing-song quality of the prose has her "reading" along with me as best she can already.

These stories can be understood by toddlers even at this early age, although the "recommended" age for this book is older.

A great book and a good deal - worth the price.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We love "Madeline". We read them all the time., August 21, 1999

By A Customer

I am sitting here with a young lady four years old who is also called Madeline and a large part of her being named Madeline was that I as her father - am "Mad about Madeline" too.

It is the flow and rythmn of the stories plus the beautiful water color illustrations. My four year old's favorite is "Madeline's Rescue". My favorite is "Madeline and the Gypsies" but they are all outstanding. A childhood without one of these books - buy one of the paperbacks if you you are new to Madeline and don't want to buy the complete selection yet- is incomprehensible.