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9th out of 41 books
—
12 voters
Lentil
Lentil cannot sing or even whistle; longing to make music in some fashion, he provides himself with a harmonica and practices constantly wherever he is, especially in the bathtub, because there his tone is improved 100 percent. A book that, along with its fun, truly illustrates the American scene.
Paperback, 64 pages
Published
April 27th 1978
by Puffin
(first published January 1st 1940)
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I cannot believe I never read this when I was little. Lentil, a young boy who cannot pucker his lips, has never been able to sing, nor can he whistle. What is a boy to do? He goes to the store and buys a harmonica and plays it all around town all the way to school. Everyone likes it. That is, everyone except Old Sneep. While everyone is preparing for Colonel Carter's return to town, Old Sneep is being an old grouch and decides to suck on a lemon, which causes the band to not play (their lips are...more
I'm giving this five stars for the illustrations. The words are sweet, but I almost felt that the illustrations told the entire story just as well. Lentil is the most adorable boy and the story is nostalgic and fun and touching--poor Lentil cannot sing well, or whistle, but he loves music... so he saves his money to buy a harmonica; and his harmonica playing soon saves the day! This is from the early 1940s but you could totally picture Opie Taylor from "Andy Griffith" reading this and getting in...more
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Even before I cracked open the book, I could sense the puckered lips and the slurping of the lemon. McCloskey's simple black on white drawings convey small town life in Ohio between the first and second World Wars. In some ways it seems a little naive, but that is part of what helps it work. As for Lentil's finding an alternative to singing, which he couldn't do, his initiative was a benefit to himself and his community.
Another wonderful book by Robert McCloskey. I remember checking this out from the Ames Public Library often when I was a kid. Great scene in it is when a tuba player in the band (during the parade) gets puckered up and unable to play b/c he sees someone sucking on a lemon! I recently bought a beat-up old library copy of this book - the original version in red. Very nostalgic.
This is some crazy shit! It's about a kid who plays the harmonica. And there's a mean old dude who ruins the big welcome parade by eating a lemon which somehow keeps the musicians from playing their instruments. Robert McCloskey drew very pretty pictures but this story kinda sucks.
Apr 18, 2011
Stephanie
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Stephanie by:
Sonlight
Shelves:
homeschool
What a cute classic story. Robert McCloskey knows how to write fun and moralistic stories.
The moral of this story: just because you don't have one talent doesn't mean you can't find another and in some way save the day.
But don't forget to practice practice practice!!!
The moral of this story: just because you don't have one talent doesn't mean you can't find another and in some way save the day.
But don't forget to practice practice practice!!!
A classic! The charcoal drawings evoke a time when the book takes place. Written in the 1940's and depicting small town life when everyone knew each other, it tells the story of Lentil, a boy who was inseparable from his harmonica and saves the day in Alto, Ohio.
My son liked this book because he likes playing with the harmonica. I wasn't quite sure about the whole "watching someone eat a lemon makes your lips pucker up" and I thought the Colonel was a little haughty, but fun for the kids.
"You never know what will happen when you learn to play the harmonica" I remember watching this book on Captain Kangaroo when I was 3 year old, but never really knew what the story was about. McCloskey was a very good storyteller.
This is one of my favorite stories of all time. Little Lentil is great, but the guy who starts sucking the lemons ... there is just something about him that makes me laugh, even when I think about him. Someone who just gets so much pleasure out of spoiling it for everyone else. Why are people like that so hilarious to me? McCloskey is a very adored writer in our home. His gentle but beautiful way of carefully bringing out the personalities and feelings of his characters is so charming ... Of his...more
Read with "Reading Rainbow" episode "Berlioz the Bear." The illustrations are fun and engaging (of course) but the story didn't grab us like other stories by him.
Our first five in row book! Loved the illustrations, they were amazing. The story was kind of silly and unrealistic, but had a great moral. The kids liked it anyway.
Having a great time with this book for Five In a Row. DD immediately wanted to get a harmonica.
Some topics we're drawing from the story:
-Uniqueness/Talents
-Ohio geography, flag, etc
-Quality of sound/reverberations
-Telling a story through pictures/sequencing
-Narration
-Playing with various instruments
Some topics we're drawing from the story:
-Uniqueness/Talents
-Ohio geography, flag, etc
-Quality of sound/reverberations
-Telling a story through pictures/sequencing
-Narration
-Playing with various instruments
Revising my thinking on this one after hearing about "Old Sneep" and seeing how fascinated the girls are with the story - it's been a frequent topic of play and conversation this week.
Full-page black and white illustrations bring this story about a boy who discovers his talent, though seemingly small, actually makes a difference. Great!
Oct 27, 2012
Amy
marked it as picture-books-read
Robert McCloskey's illustrations are a treat and so is the story. For more, visit: http://sunlitpages.blogspot.com/2012/...
The illustrations were fabulous. Very 1940s which is when it was written. I thought the ending a bit weak, but over all a good story.
Cute story. It held my 4yr old's attention but too much for my two year old. I suspect we'll visit this one again in the future.
A lovely book but he was definitely still getting his sea legs - lots of themes in here that will be perfected in Homer Price.
Despite the old-timey feel of this one, it was a very fun story. My 4 yr old son especially liked the mouth noises. I wish I'd had his harmonica out for some acting out too.
Lovely little story of a boy saving the day in his small town. I especially loved the illustrations.
Like other Robert McCloskey books I LOVE the illustrations but am just "meh" about the story.
My favorites book as a child, and my favorite to read to my children
Cute story about a boy who saves the day. It does not make a lot of sense, though!
love the vintage illustrations and cute story...especially ol' sneep sucking a lemon!
An average story, but great illustrations of quaint small town life and buildings.
I have such fond memories of this book. It might be my favorite Robert McCloskey book.
"So you never can tell what will happen when you learn to play the harmonica."
It reminded me of my brother Daniel because he plays the harmonica.
Love the illustrations and the lovely stories Robert McCloskey wrote.
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Aug 11, 2009 10:17am