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When Everybody Wore a Hat
This is the story of
when I was a boy,
almost 100 years ago,
when fire engines were
pulled by horses,
boys did not play with girls,
kids went to libraries for books,
there was no TV,
you could see a movie for a nickel,
and everybody wore a hat.
when I was a boy,
almost 100 years ago,
when fire engines were
pulled by horses,
boys did not play with girls,
kids went to libraries for books,
there was no TV,
you could see a movie for a nickel,
and everybody wore a hat.
Hardcover, 40 pages
Published
April 15th 2003
by HarperCollins
(first published 2003)
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Rather than presented as a straightforward story, this book—a collection of William Steig's childhood memories that was first published when he was nearly one hundred years old—allows the impressions of the author's youth to come as sort of a kaleidoscope of remembrances; the other kids around him, his family and their idiosyncrasies, and the places near where he grew up that made a lasting impact on him. The book is much more visceral than direct, allowing the stream of thoughts and memories t...more
This story was fun to read and I really like the illustrations. The story is about the author's childhood in New York. He begins the story by saying "This is the story of when I was a boy, almost 100 years ago, when fire engines were pulled by horses, boys did not play with girls, kids went to libraries for books, there was no TV, you could see a movie for a nickel, and everybody wore a hat." Throughout the story we learn how the world once was. I could use this book to to teach what life was ba...more
I didn't realize at first that this was actually the author describing his boyhood. As someone obsessed with the historical (especially turn-of-the-century immigrant experiences), I fell in love with the book. I think it's a great way to show kids how things were done in the past. As for the reviews who describe it as "disjointed," well, not every book has a beginning-middle-end. This was more like one-page vignettes. Think of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. Irish-immigrant story for mu...more
An autobiography of William Steig growing up in a world where everybody wore a hat (even the monkeys) and where you had to stand very still to have your picture taken on a wooden horse (which was very hard for the horse. It's a fascinating remembrance of growing up at a different time--parents quarreling in multiple languages, listening to records on a wind up phonograph, spending a nickel going to the movies, being afraid of the janitor's dog, marveling at the number of cats a neighbor had, and...more
The fond, accessible remembrances of a very grown-up writer. Witty and wistful and wise, this reads like a key to this great artist's career. Steig has always had feet planted in two worlds: amazingly still young enough to remember the wonder and blessed gullibility of growing up, yet all the while equipped with the perspective of the most experienced journalist to be able to pick out the good parts.
I have been teaching a unit in readers' workshop on biography. I was pretty pleased to find this one since autobiographies are tough to find for children. I thought my kids would be thrilled to read an autobiography from the author of Shrek. As always, I read it first to be sure it was appropriate. Bummer! This book is disjointed, confusing, and completely lacking in a narrative thread. Yeesh!
This was a fun book. It was biographical in a very early elementary fashion. This reminded me of the journal entries that I used to read from second graders when I student-taught. I see this as a highly useable mentor text for that age range. Steig offers a very light easily-followed example of elaboration and writes in a very personal manner that children could easily build their own writing from.
Steig tries to show how different the world was when he was a kid, in the 1910’s. It is entertaining and educational. I wish he went into the hats more, instead of just saying “there was no such thing as a hatless human being” and giving a few illustrations, but he does capture the overall mood well. With an adult, it will get kids thinking. Without, I’m not sure.
Bleh. I prefer William Steig's earlier illustrations. I'm actually using this book to show how personal narratives often work best when they focus on just one topic -- Steig jumps around from story to story with (what I think is intended to be) comic effect.
This book is honest and adorable. It is written in the voice of a small child, so it sounds a little disjointed but that's pretty much how kids talk. And the illustrations are amazing!
Funny entertaining biography. Not necessarily of a historical figure but could be used to teach of World War 1 times and what life was like back then! Funny illustrations :)
Auto-Biography. Great book about the "olden days" by a man that actually lived it and wrote this when he was almost 100.
immigration
life in New York in the early 1900s
life in New York in the early 1900s
:)
Mar 07, 2008
Belmont Storytime
added it
good for older kids- early elementary
Apr 15, 2013
Christina Pletcher
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
pb-soc-studies-emphasis,
pb-amazing-art
Mar 05, 2013
Kate Shea
marked it as for-owen
Feb 05, 2013
Becky
marked it as to-read
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William Steig was born in New York City in 1907. In a family where every member was involved in the arts, it was not surprising that Steig became an artist.
He published his first children's book, Roland the Minstrel Pig, in 1968, embarking on a new and very different career.
Steig's books reflect his conviction that children want the security of a devoted family and friends. When Sylvester, Farmer...more
More about William Steig...
He published his first children's book, Roland the Minstrel Pig, in 1968, embarking on a new and very different career.
Steig's books reflect his conviction that children want the security of a devoted family and friends. When Sylvester, Farmer...more
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