Do You Have a Hat?

by Eileen Spinelli, Geraldo Valerio (Illustrator)

Overview

A fancy hat. A hat that's plain.
A hat for keeping off the rain.
A glowing hat. A hat with fruit.
A hat for that new dress or suit.
All herein have hats, it's true —
fantastic, magnificent hats!
Do you?
What do Spanish painter Francisco de Goya, Russian-American composer Igor Stravinsky, South American entertainer Carmen Miranda, African-American cowboy Nat Love, and President Abraham Lincoln have in common?
HATS! Unique, distinctive, wonderful hats! And this bright and cheerful picture book from best-selling author Eileen Spinelli and colorful newcomer Geraldo Valério will have you thinking twice before going outside without yours!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780689862533
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Publication date:	10/01/2004
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	408,307
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Eileen Spinelli has written many books for children. Her 1991 debut Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch was a Christopher Award winner, and she has gone on to author numerous picture books, poetry collections, and chapter books, including the bestselling When Mama Comes Home Tonight, and the critically acclaimed Sophie’s Masterpiece. Eileen lives in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.

Geraldo Valério is new to Simon & Schuster, but not to children's publishing. Born in Brazil, Geraldo was educated both in his native country and at New York University, where he earned an M.A. in Fine Arts. He began his career in children's publishing in 1995 with the picture book A Cobra Zola, published by Le Publishing House. He went on to publish other children's titles for Brazilian publishers. This is his first children's book in the United States. Geraldo lives in Portland, Oregon.

Editorial Reviews

PreS-Gr 2-Spinelli provides some great entertainment in this rhyming story that showcases the famous headgear of individuals such as Igor Stravinsky, Carmen Miranda, Abraham Lincoln, Nat Love, and Johnny Appleseed. For example, "Francisco de Goya had a hat,/a hat with candles on the brim-/a clever hat that suited him-/that made a chandelier of light/for painting far into the night." From its opening lines ("Do YOU have a hat?/Something fuzzy, warm, and red,/to keep the snowflakes off your head?") to its closing ones naming different toppers ("A magic hat? A cap? A crown?/A country hat? A hat for town?"), children will be enchanted and engaged. They will certainly join in on the title refrain on each page. Valerio's illustrations are done in acrylics primarily with bright shades of orange, blue, green, and red. His stylized figures are humorous, with exaggerated facial features. The endpapers offer brief tidbits about the people who are represented here. Overall, this original and amusing book is a great marriage of text and artwork. It will make a terrific storytime addition, either by itself or combined with other clothing-related selections such as Jonathan London's Froggy Gets Dressed (Viking, 1992) or Joan Nodset's classic Who Took the Farmer's Hat? (HarperCollins, 1963).-Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

In bouncy rhyme, Spinelli invites younger readers to contemplate the many shapes and uses of headgear throughout history, drawing on specific examples from Abe Lincoln to Carmen Miranda: "John Chapman had a hat. / They say he wore a cooking pot. / Some folks believe that, some do not. / If true-he was a sight indeed- / a pot-topped sower of apple seed. / Do YOU have a hat?" Valerio makes his US debut with a set of smiling, fancifully stylized portraits, generally flanked by birds, bugs, or other small companions wearing similar hats. With a line or two of background for each historical figure supplied on the endpapers, this nicely expands the "hats as occupational markers" theme in Ann Morris's Hats, Hats, Hats (1989), and others. (Picture book/nonfiction. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews