There Once Was a Man Named Michael Finnegan

by Mary Ann Hoberman

The team which collaborated on The Eensy-Weensy Spider meet again to offer an elaborated version of the repetitive children's song about a man who creates quite a "din-igan" playing the "violin-igan." 15,000 first printing.

Genres: Picture Books, Music, Childrens, Humor, Poetry

28 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Mary Ann Hoberman was an American author of over 30 children's books.

Reviews

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Michael Finnegan grows whiskers on his chin-agin. He shaves them but they grow right in-agin. He loves to play the violin-agin. But he's so bad, people pay him to stop the din-agin.

The whole story is written in this silly rhyme and children love it. There wasn't a great lesson, or great illustrations at that, but I would still recommend it to children because I love that there's the song at the beginning. Kids will love singing along.

"Poor old Michael Finnegan, begin-agin." :)

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this one with the children Sunday at Circle of Hope's public meeting in South Philly. It was fun to sing (the tune is in the back of the book, my friend Hope was familiar with the tune and helped us learn it). Poor Old Michael Finnegan is so bad at playing the violin that people pay him to stop, but he loves to play and finally he finds someone who appreciates his music.

[Jenna Taimuty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: There Once was a Man Named Michael Finnegan 
Author: Mary Ann Hoberman
Illustrator: Nadine Bernard Westcott 
Genre: Predictable, Sing-a-long, Rhyming
Theme(s): Predictable, Repetition, Sing-a-long 
Opening line/sentence: “There once was a man named Michael Finnegan, he had whiskers on his chin-igan, shaved them off and they grew in-igan, poor old Michael Finnegan, begin-igan.”
Brief Book Summary): This book repeats Michael Finnegan, begin-igan every page, but with new rhymes added in. It is about his journey playing violin, and the rags and riches it brings upon him. He then stumbles upon a dog who loves when he plays the violin and they live happily ever after together.
 
Professional Recommendation/Review #1:
Karen Deans (Children’s Literature)
http://www.clcd.com.ezaccess.librarie...
Short blurb from the review: “In this contagiously rhythmic adaptation of the sing-along about a man named Finnegan whose whiskers get shaved but keep growing back, we learn the rest of the story. Each verse offers a lively, silly insight into the man behind the whiskers, whose story is ushered onward with the refrain "begin-igan."”

Professional Recommendation/Review #2 (cut & paste, details bellow): 
The Horn Book Guide Online
http://www.hornbookguide.com.ezaccess...
Short blurb from review: “The light mood and sharp lyrics of Michael Finnegan's changing fortunes are playfully interpreted by cartoon-style watercolors with plenty of humorous details. Music to the song is included.” 


Response to Two Professional Reviews (3-4 sentences in your own words) 
Both reviews highlight the light-heartedness and silliness of this book. The vibrant illustrations engage children in the story line and the sing-songy nature of the book is easy to catch on to, as both reviews state. The story line is very humorous and thus, students will love this book; I agree with both reviews.

Evaluation of Literary Elements (3-4 sentences in your own words):
These illustrations are bright and cheery, to match the tone of the book overall. The lines in the drawing are relatable to children, as they look as though children could have drawn them as well, which makes it more appealing to young readers. The rhyming and repetition throughout the book make it very easy to predict and easy for children to memorize to learn story elements more quickly.

Consideration of Instructional Application:
This book could be used to plan a plethora of activities for children. We could act out the book as a group and then have the students break off into smaller groups and use the elements we talk about to create their own repetitive story with a character resembling Michael Finnegan. This book could be used in a music classroom, implementing different instruments throughout the book and using clapping as well, to truly make the book come to life.

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

In Mary Ann Hoberman's retelling of the old song, Michael Finnegan is a street musician who plays the violin so poorly that people pay him to stop. With his newfound riches he sets off to find someone who appreciates his music.

We got this book back in 2006 as a courtesy gift from a Scholastic classroom book order when the book we really wanted was delayed and unavailable to ship. I have no record of actually ever reading this with my daughter, so this may be the first time I've read it.

I'm not impressed with the rhymes or story, but my daughter probably would have enjoyed the presence of a dog in the pages.

[Teressa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cute book based on a popular song. Michael Finnegan is a rather sad fellow, but meets a dear little friend. He is a horrible violinist, but his friend could care less. His family is full of hillbillies, and my students love the pictures that go with that section. In addition, they giggle when they see Michael in his boxer shorts. Good book for tying into music lessons. The words and notes for the song are even inside the book!

[Tessa Duncan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Micheal Finnegan was a poor man until he played his violin and people paid him money to stop. But Micheal thought he was good at the violin and made a fool out of himself. Micheal used his money to buy a house, car and dog and lived happily ever after. A fun sing along song that children would love to sing along too. Could sing faster and faster each page.

[Carina · Rating 4 out of 5]

My mom and I know this song from the old Wee Sing in Sillyville movie. So, of course, my mom sang this book to me instead of just reading it. While the lyrics have been tweaked to tell a story about Michael and his unappreciated violin-playing skills, the book is still catchy and fun. For a four year old, it was good enough to read more than once or twice.

[Shelbi Edinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is interesting because it can be set to a tune of music and sang. This can bring a lot of other subject areas into the classroom. Rhyming also makes it easy to stick to the story and entertain younger children.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

There Once Was a Man Named Michael Finnegan (Hardcover)
by Mary Ann Hoberman
based on the original song, this book extends the story, and the song. Great for little kids and helping them understand rhythm and rhyme and how you can find adventure in both.

[Mely · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only knew the first verse of this song. I don't know if this book is the actual song or not but regardless is a unique and unusual interpretation of the song

[Alyssa Ricard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book because it really reflected on the compassion of animals. Even when no one else liked his music, his new dog did!

[Kristen Dutkiewicz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a silly book, but children love it.

[MayBelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny & very good book. I liked the song. My mom sang it to me.

[Karlie Payne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a song book that would be fun to read with young students, because it repeats certain lines and would be fun for the kids to sing a long with. It would also be fun to play the music to the song and read/sing along with the music while showing the pictures in the book.

[Zaidee · Rating 5 out of 5]

lots of laughter reading this one.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a silly, repetitive rhyming song about a man named Michael Finnegan who does not know how to play the violin very well. The narrative is simple and the illustrations are colorful and cartoonish.

If I recognized this song as one from my childhood, I might've had more of a connection with this book, but unfortunately, it just seemed to be silly. Still, we enjoy reading books by Mary Ann Hoberman and Nadine Bernard Westcott, and this was another entertaining collaboration for them. We enjoyed reading this book together.

[Becca Dunlap · Rating 2 out of 5]

This rhyming picture book teaches children to keep doing things they love because it doesn't matter what others think... if it make you happy continue. And if you're lucky, someone (or something) else will come around that loves it too.

[Aleisha Pendleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book wasn't my favorite. I think that it would be fun for the class to read and maybe do a project where they rhymed with "igan". It did have an underlying story about friendship. However, I don't think that it is a book I will be in a hurry to buy.

[Tricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

a bit strange. wouldn't do for music storytimes. finnegan looks a bit strange.

[MissInformation · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finnegan plays his violin-igin, and no one likes the awful din-igan, til he finds a friend in a dog. Could shorten and use for Story Time. Cute Illus.

[Maren Prestegaard · Rating 2 out of 5]

this song will not go away. and I felt kinda bad for the dude.

[Cassi Dick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book for young students because of the song that goes along with it. It incorperated a fun way to read, because with some students it may be harder to get them interested in reading.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Books like these remind of songs to sing with the kids. The additional verses fit right in with the original silliness.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly and fun to sing/read!

[Brianna Boyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be a great book/song to help your children with phonemic awareness.

[Alison Slack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Language Feature: Rhyming and word play.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kids loved it!