Hats off for the Fourth of July (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Gus Miller (Illustrator)
Key Phrases: Fourth of July

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Newcomer Miller's artwork provides the fireworks for this homage to the Independence Day parade, set in the Massachusetts seaside town of Chatham. Ziefert (When I First Came to This Land) describes the goings-on in stagnant verse that belies the gaiety of the proceedings. The predictable rhyming couplets suffer from occasionally strained rhyme schemes (town/around; boom/soon) and faltering rhythm ("Cowboys on horses yell out loud./ We all shout backDwhat a happy crowd"). Against solid-colored backgrounds, Miller whimsically tweaks traditional proportion, creating some stylized, angular images of people on unicycles, stilts and motorcycles. He peppers his paintings with playful particulars: a pooch purloins a twirler's baton, a uniformed George Washington look-alike appears in the crowd and one onlooker holds a pet rabbit on his lap. With images of a horse, a cow and even a clown straddling the turn of a page, the artist creates the feeling of an endless parade of marchers. This volume may well find an appreciative local audience, since the collaborators capture the flavor of this Cape Cod vacation spot (spectators cheer a car transformed into the shape of a whale; a lighthouse beacon pierces the night sky while fireworks explode overhead), yet the excitement of this holiday radiates more universally and warmly in Happy Birthday, America! (reviewed on p. 94). Ages 4-7. (May)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1-Ziefert shows how the townspeople of Chatham, MA, celebrate our nation's birthday while Miller's striking illustrations richly enhance the small-town ambience. Short sentences, repetition, and rhyme create enough anticipation to keep the pages turning as readers follow the parade as it travels its route. Both text and art create a sense of movement across the double-page spreads. Endpapers introduce a day in the life of the charming Cape Cod town's Main Street, beginning with a plane trailing a banner advertising the big event and concluding with fireworks ablaze over a now-darkened landscape. There's plenty to see, and the text has the steady beat of a parade drummer.
Susan Garland, Maynard Public Library, MA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile (May 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670891185
• ISBN-13: 978-0670891184
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,758,255 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What a great book for the summer holiday season!, June 19, 2000

By	Tanya A. Cheff (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

What a great book to introduce children to patriotism and the All American parade! The illustrations bring a parade to life! All three of my kids ages 6, 4 and 20 months loved this book! Like a real parade, something for everyone!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hats Off for the Fourth of July!, June 15, 2000

By	Claudia Leeds (Wamego, Kansas, USA) - See all my reviews

This book captures the essence of a favorite American event - the annual Fourth of July parade that can be witnessed in almost every small town. Ziefert's rhyming story is wonderfully illustrated with vivid paintings of the different entries in the parade. Uncle Sam on stilts, the Little League, the High School Band, the local beauty pageant winner---it's just like the author says "Everyone marches on the Fourth of July". My favorite picture is the one of the baton twirler trying to retrieve her baton from the mischievous pup that caught it. This book is an excellent one to read aloud to toddlers and preschoolers.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hats Off for the Fourth of July, July 8, 2007

By	History_of_Art_Geek (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews

There's a steady beat to the text, which plays into the movement of the parade, and arrests the listener almost enticing them to turn the page. The phrase "music and drum" is repeated throughout, and is so catchy I find myself humming it afterwards. The poems are strained in places, but overall the writing is pleasing to the ear. The illustrations are delightful, and brightly colored. The artist, Gustaf Miller has a homespun appeal. The images are realistic; yet there's a casualness, and lose flair to his paintings.

We don't learn anything about Independence Day in Hats Off for the Fourth of July, which is fine, but I wonder if the illustrator has ever been to an Independence Day parade. There are a few American flags painted into the scenes, but every Fourth of July parade I've attended is adorned with American flags, and even the spectators are decked out in our nations colors.

As there's little in the way of reading material for young ones on our country's birthday, the book passes the test, and the illustrations are certainly worth a long look.