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Quatsch-Parade: Witzig
Ducks growing out of bananas? A mouse catching a cat? What’s wrong with this book?
Yes, there’s something strange, something funny and even downright preposterous on every page of this book But it’s not a mistake – it’s nonsense! And it’s also surrealism. Nonsense lies at the heart of many beloved nursery rhymes. Children readily accept odd statements like “the cow
jumped over the moon” and “the dish ran away with the spoon.” This fanciful bending of reality is also basic to surrealism.
In this book, nonsense and surrealism combine to spark creativity and imagination. What’s true? What’s impossible? What’s absolutely absurd? From Eric Carle, creator of the classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, comes a book to make children laugh and think, preparing them for a
lifetime of loving both words and art.
Following on the heels of The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse (an homage to the artist Franz Marc and expressionism) and Friends, with its semi-abstract artwork, The Nonsense Show forms a trilogy of sorts, dedicated to introducing young readers to different styles of artwork without ever overlooking the need to, first and foremost, appeal to children and their love of play. One of the true legends and pioneers of picture book making continues to expand and challenge the genre.
Yes, there’s something strange, something funny and even downright preposterous on every page of this book But it’s not a mistake – it’s nonsense! And it’s also surrealism. Nonsense lies at the heart of many beloved nursery rhymes. Children readily accept odd statements like “the cow
jumped over the moon” and “the dish ran away with the spoon.” This fanciful bending of reality is also basic to surrealism.
In this book, nonsense and surrealism combine to spark creativity and imagination. What’s true? What’s impossible? What’s absolutely absurd? From Eric Carle, creator of the classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, comes a book to make children laugh and think, preparing them for a
lifetime of loving both words and art.
Following on the heels of The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse (an homage to the artist Franz Marc and expressionism) and Friends, with its semi-abstract artwork, The Nonsense Show forms a trilogy of sorts, dedicated to introducing young readers to different styles of artwork without ever overlooking the need to, first and foremost, appeal to children and their love of play. One of the true legends and pioneers of picture book making continues to expand and challenge the genre.
Hardcover
First published October 6, 2015
About the author
Eric Carle
800 books2,547 followersEric Carle was an American author, designer and illustrator of children's books. His picture book The Very Hungry Caterpillar, first published in 1969, has been translated into more than 66 languages and sold more than 50 million copies. Carle's career as an illustrator and children's book author accelerated after he collaborated on Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?. Carle illustrated more than 70 books, most of which he also wrote, and more than 145 million copies of his books have been sold around the world.
In 2003, the American Library Association awarded Carle the biennial Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal (now called the Children's Literature Legacy Award), a prize for writers or illustrators of children's books published in the U.S. who have made lasting contributions to the field. Carle was also a U.S. nominee for the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2010.
In 2003, the American Library Association awarded Carle the biennial Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal (now called the Children's Literature Legacy Award), a prize for writers or illustrators of children's books published in the U.S. who have made lasting contributions to the field. Carle was also a U.S. nominee for the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2010.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 176 reviews
February 16, 2016
This book is just about absurd things.
A rabbit pulls a human from a hat.
A bird flies underwater while a fish lives in a birdcage.
A kangaroo has a human child in her pouch.
A two-headed snake (has no tail).
Etc. etc. A tennis player hits an apple instead of a tennis ball and ends up with applesauce on her face.
Some of it is freaky, like when the horse and the human woman decide to trade heads.
Some of it is whimsical, like when fluffy sheep come out of a steam engine instead of puffs of steam.
It's told in rhyme, but I don't think the rhymes are particularly good.
Could a leopard
Change his spot
To a tiger-ish stripe?
Probably not.
Would a tiger wish
To swap his stripe
For a leopard's spot?
CERTAINLY not!
I mean... okay. o.O
Tl;dr – Not the best Eric Carle has to offer. Good for a laugh or for weird imaginings (which kids love) but the rhymes are lacking. Carle, or his publisher, tries to pretend that this is like Mother Goose. Listen... this is nothing like Mother Goose. You can't just write nonsensical gibberish and expect children to eat it up. No. Mother Goose is amazing, this is lame. Surrealistic rhymes does not a Mother Goose make. o.O
A rabbit pulls a human from a hat.
A bird flies underwater while a fish lives in a birdcage.
A kangaroo has a human child in her pouch.
A two-headed snake (has no tail).
Etc. etc. A tennis player hits an apple instead of a tennis ball and ends up with applesauce on her face.
Some of it is freaky, like when the horse and the human woman decide to trade heads.
Some of it is whimsical, like when fluffy sheep come out of a steam engine instead of puffs of steam.
It's told in rhyme, but I don't think the rhymes are particularly good.
Could a leopard
Change his spot
To a tiger-ish stripe?
Probably not.
Would a tiger wish
To swap his stripe
For a leopard's spot?
CERTAINLY not!
I mean... okay. o.O
Tl;dr – Not the best Eric Carle has to offer. Good for a laugh or for weird imaginings (which kids love) but the rhymes are lacking. Carle, or his publisher, tries to pretend that this is like Mother Goose. Listen... this is nothing like Mother Goose. You can't just write nonsensical gibberish and expect children to eat it up. No. Mother Goose is amazing, this is lame. Surrealistic rhymes does not a Mother Goose make. o.O
October 13, 2021
I had never heard of this book before I picked it up from my library. I'm not overly familiar with Eric Carle--I really only know The Hungry Catepillar--but the art is instantly recognizable. I'm not sure about his other books, but this one is a rhyming book and had a nice rhythm. If I'm being honest here, reading this as an adult freaked me out a little. It was a little--a lot--strange at times. Most adults live firmly in reality, with little tolerance for surrealism, except as a shock factor or modern art. For a child however, this is wonderful and silly, and everything they dream of. So I'll put my bias aside and rate it accordingly. I find that this is probably best for younger children so I'll recommend this for kids up to 8 years of age.
December 19, 2015
When I first picked up this book I thought to myself, "I think Eric Carle has finally lost it." Being a tad creeped out, I hastily cast the book aside. I didn't think of it again until a few days later when I needed some stories for a preK readaloud. Not knowing what to expect, I added this book to the pile. And let me tell you, those kids lost their tiny minds. They were so baffled, so fascinated that they continued discussing the book after we finished reading it. This book is not for grown ups. Really, the only group that will really enjoy it are kids between the ages of 5 and 7, but man will its weirdness drive them wild. Eric Carle is a mad genius.
February 12, 2026
Continuing on the near never ending log of Eric carle books with my son, I couldn’t help but be grabbed by the absurd title and cover imagine and I’ll say one thing, you get exactly what you’re asking for with this one. In the first page or two I kind of felt like maybe Eric had finally lost it and had gone a little creatively bankrupt, but the further I got into it, the more I settled in and let my childhood surrealist loving brain take over and before long I was enjoying it very much and appreciating and honestly coming to realize the importance and oddly the deepness of which this book actually shines a light towards. I think this novel can almost be a test for adults to see if they’ve still kept that beautiful childhood wonder and creativity and honestly if someone finds themselves not getting or resonating with it, maybe they need to loosen up a bit and remember what being a kid really was like. To life long learning and always keeping your childhood in your heart and that wonder in your eyes. 4.25/5
October 16, 2015
First and foremost, I am probably biased because I am a huge fan of Eric Carle. We have so many of his books and my children love his illustrations and we never tire of his wonderful stories. When this book showed up at my house my kids got SO excited. We read it immediately and my kids loved it. The great part is that we recognized so many things from some of his other books and as usual, the illustrations were on spot.
As an extra bonus, I decided to read it to three first grade classrooms who are actually celebrating Eric Carle as their author of the month and these kids were SO excited to see the book, read it with me, and talk about why each page was silly. The children were all laughing, they liked how the book had lots of opposites (the lion taming the people, the rabbit pulling a man out of the hat, etc), and their favorite was the duck with human feet and the horse/human switching heads.
It's books like Eric Carle's that can really jump start the love of reading and literature and his career is epic. To think this may very well be his last children's book, well that's kind of sad. I understand it though, he's reached an age where anyone of us would want to be retired and enjoy life. But with that in mind, this would be a great note to go out on- this book is funny, it's silly, and it's a great family read. If you have little ones, this would be a great addition to your family library!
As an extra bonus, I decided to read it to three first grade classrooms who are actually celebrating Eric Carle as their author of the month and these kids were SO excited to see the book, read it with me, and talk about why each page was silly. The children were all laughing, they liked how the book had lots of opposites (the lion taming the people, the rabbit pulling a man out of the hat, etc), and their favorite was the duck with human feet and the horse/human switching heads.
It's books like Eric Carle's that can really jump start the love of reading and literature and his career is epic. To think this may very well be his last children's book, well that's kind of sad. I understand it though, he's reached an age where anyone of us would want to be retired and enjoy life. But with that in mind, this would be a great note to go out on- this book is funny, it's silly, and it's a great family read. If you have little ones, this would be a great addition to your family library!
October 24, 2015
Basically an extended drug trip. Love the illustrations of course, but as for the rest, you can probably count me in among those who "just don't get it."
January 14, 2016
a kids book everybody can enjoy because we all need more surrealism, i think...plus, is this about drugs? could have been written by The Posthuman Dada Guide: Tzara & Lenin Play Chess
October 27, 2015
Odd - some re-hashing of older art with new things and total nonsensical text. Odd.
November 21, 2015
The thing about surrealism (for me, at least) is that it needs to be done in small doses. Stick a Magritte in with a whole bunch of Renaissance masters and it stands out, and inspires discussion, and elicits emotion.
But when you put a whole bunch of surreal pictures right in a row, with narration that makes no sense, it becomes overwhelming. It becomes stressful.
I feel like Eric Carle was trying SO HARD to teach people about surrealism, but instead we ended up on a bad drug trip. If I were going to teach the kiddos about surrealism as an art movement, there are other books I'd choose first. If I wanted to introduce the kiddos to the idea of explaining what you see, and dissecting what is unrealistic...I'd do it without the text accompanying the pictures.
This was just a miss all around.
But when you put a whole bunch of surreal pictures right in a row, with narration that makes no sense, it becomes overwhelming. It becomes stressful.
I feel like Eric Carle was trying SO HARD to teach people about surrealism, but instead we ended up on a bad drug trip. If I were going to teach the kiddos about surrealism as an art movement, there are other books I'd choose first. If I wanted to introduce the kiddos to the idea of explaining what you see, and dissecting what is unrealistic...I'd do it without the text accompanying the pictures.
This was just a miss all around.
October 24, 2015
Too terrifying to ever read to a child, but reading it for myself, I have to say I loved the art. I would consider buying to have as a coffee table book to start conversations.
October 11, 2017
My second favorite of Eric Carle. Don't we just love this kind of upside-down humor?
November 24, 2017
I love Eric Carle's iconic watercolor artwork. The pictures of "nonsense" were fun and bright to see. Plus, the book gets kids to use their imaginations, looking at made up scenarios.
February 5, 2018
Not one of my favorite Eric Carle books. I didn't love the rhyme scheme.
November 7, 2023
didnt really hit the mark on surrealism if im being honest
March 15, 2026
got this for my nephew from the PMA. great introduction to the idea of surrealism for little kids
June 3, 2021
3.5 stars It held the attention of children 16 months to 36 months.
November 24, 2015
Since I just reviewed an Eric Carle book, I thought I would follow it with his latest. THE NONSENSE SHOW is totally crazy and wacky! It exudes nonsense and imaginative voice. The book jacket labels the work "nonsense and surrealism," sparking "creativity and imagination."
I looked up the definition of "surrealism" and found that it means "to feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur." Then I looked up non sequitur to make sure I understood what I was about to say in this review: non sequitur means an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises; a statement containing an illogical conclusion.
OH, MY! I thought I was looking at and reading an Eric Carle book, not a big-words-for-us-little-kids book! But by those definitions, this colorful, wacky book does just all of those things. Objects are placed backwards, upside-down, all turned around. Words say things that are not; they come at the reader with silliness and unpredictability.
A bird is swimming in an aquarium while just across the double page is a fish in a bird cage.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A woman with a tennis racquet gets ready to hit the ball.
She says,
"'What a funny-looking ball,'
Thought the tennis ace
And wound up
With applesauce
In her face." (the ball was an apple)
Every double page is full of silly characters--people or animals acting in reverse of what we would imagine. Silly things are said that just don't make much, if any, sense at all. It is just plain CRAZY!!
Eric Carle's wonderful art is at its usual best--colorful, bright, bold, and wonderful.
Reading Level: 3 - 7 Years
Author/Illustrator:
Eric Carle was born in Syracuse, New York, in 1929. In 1935, his parents returned to their home of Germany where Mr. Carle was educated. He attended a prestigious art school in Stuttgart, Germany, Akademie der bilenden Künste. He dreamed of returning to America and, in 1952, he did. He worked for the promotion department of The New York Times and then became the art director of an advertising agency.
Bill Martin, Jr. saw an ad done by Eric Carle and called to see if he would illustrate a children’s book he had written. This collaboration is known to the world today as “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” His world changed. He began writing and illustrating his own children’s books.
“Eric Carle has two grown-up children, a son and a daughter. He divides his time between the Florida Keys and the hills of North Carolina.” **
He and his wife, Bobbi, dreamed of and built The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA. They “were interested in developing enthusiasts for the art of picture books and in encouraging the habit of museum going in our younger visitors. Children’s picture book art is the introduction to art for young people, and we wanted to show the highest examples of that art to demonstrate the beauty, the seriousness and the fun of it. We wanted to create a museum that exhibits the work of national and international picture book artists.” ** PLUS…his museum site has activities and games, resources, and so much more.
You can also find him at his own website and blog here – http://www.eric-carle.com/home.html
If you love to read Eric Carle’s books with your children and want activities to go along with them, I suggest doing a search for “activities Eric Carle” (or a few other similar words). There is a plethora of creative activities to go with each of his books amassed on the internet for your perusal and use.
I looked up the definition of "surrealism" and found that it means "to feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur." Then I looked up non sequitur to make sure I understood what I was about to say in this review: non sequitur means an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises; a statement containing an illogical conclusion.
OH, MY! I thought I was looking at and reading an Eric Carle book, not a big-words-for-us-little-kids book! But by those definitions, this colorful, wacky book does just all of those things. Objects are placed backwards, upside-down, all turned around. Words say things that are not; they come at the reader with silliness and unpredictability.
A bird is swimming in an aquarium while just across the double page is a fish in a bird cage.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A woman with a tennis racquet gets ready to hit the ball.
She says,
"'What a funny-looking ball,'
Thought the tennis ace
And wound up
With applesauce
In her face." (the ball was an apple)
Every double page is full of silly characters--people or animals acting in reverse of what we would imagine. Silly things are said that just don't make much, if any, sense at all. It is just plain CRAZY!!
Eric Carle's wonderful art is at its usual best--colorful, bright, bold, and wonderful.
Reading Level: 3 - 7 Years
Author/Illustrator:
Eric Carle was born in Syracuse, New York, in 1929. In 1935, his parents returned to their home of Germany where Mr. Carle was educated. He attended a prestigious art school in Stuttgart, Germany, Akademie der bilenden Künste. He dreamed of returning to America and, in 1952, he did. He worked for the promotion department of The New York Times and then became the art director of an advertising agency.
Bill Martin, Jr. saw an ad done by Eric Carle and called to see if he would illustrate a children’s book he had written. This collaboration is known to the world today as “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” His world changed. He began writing and illustrating his own children’s books.
“Eric Carle has two grown-up children, a son and a daughter. He divides his time between the Florida Keys and the hills of North Carolina.” **
He and his wife, Bobbi, dreamed of and built The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA. They “were interested in developing enthusiasts for the art of picture books and in encouraging the habit of museum going in our younger visitors. Children’s picture book art is the introduction to art for young people, and we wanted to show the highest examples of that art to demonstrate the beauty, the seriousness and the fun of it. We wanted to create a museum that exhibits the work of national and international picture book artists.” ** PLUS…his museum site has activities and games, resources, and so much more.
You can also find him at his own website and blog here – http://www.eric-carle.com/home.html
If you love to read Eric Carle’s books with your children and want activities to go along with them, I suggest doing a search for “activities Eric Carle” (or a few other similar words). There is a plethora of creative activities to go with each of his books amassed on the internet for your perusal and use.
February 20, 2019
2016: This was a seriously weird book. My seven-year-old was not impressed by it. But I think we should all make room for a little nonsense in our lives. I'm guessing my daughter was just a little too old to be captivated by the contradictions. A four-year-old would get it.
2019: I was so right. My four-year-old picked this book out at the library and adored it. I still don't love it but it is just right for four-year-olds.
2019: I was so right. My four-year-old picked this book out at the library and adored it. I still don't love it but it is just right for four-year-olds.
February 23, 2016
This is a sad day, when I am left with a one star for the incredible & wondrous Eric Carle. I'd like to say the illustrations are worthwhile, but once I came to a spread featuring a horse with a girl's head, there was no hope. I understand what Carle is doing, with his jabs of nonsense, but this is a miss & clearly only published because he is who he is. Not recommended.
December 7, 2015
Not a favorite. With the exception of a couple of pages that reminded me of good silly poems, most of this seemed like illustrations where the words were added as an afterthought to fit the silly story.
I think kids will like this though, because it will make them laugh. I just wish the writing were as good as the illustrations.
I think kids will like this though, because it will make them laugh. I just wish the writing were as good as the illustrations.
December 22, 2015
At first I was going to dock this for uneven rhyme meter, but then I realized IT'S A NONSENSE BOOK, so it's okay. Eric Carle gets out his crazy for this one and I love it.
April 22, 2018
The more Eric Carle books I read, the more I believe that The Hungry Caterpillar is famous due to the unique way the book is laid out, not due to its illustrations or writing.
May 12, 2018
NOTE: These reviews are based on the reactions of myself and my now 14 month old daughter
The baby liked the weird pictures, and would honestly probably give it two stars. She especially liked the half of a body chasing the other half. Maybe even three stars.
But as her mother I can't give more than one star to this nightmare fever dream of a book. It's supposed to come off as 'whimsical' and 'fun' but is really freaking horrifying. The giant mouse chasing a cat, a rabbit pulling a man out of a hat, and all in that unique art style of Carle. I don't even know what's going on in the last page, I'm pretty sure that's a dead body.
Anyway, get this for your next baby shower, it makes the perfect gift to confuse somebody.
The baby liked the weird pictures, and would honestly probably give it two stars. She especially liked the half of a body chasing the other half. Maybe even three stars.
But as her mother I can't give more than one star to this nightmare fever dream of a book. It's supposed to come off as 'whimsical' and 'fun' but is really freaking horrifying. The giant mouse chasing a cat, a rabbit pulling a man out of a hat, and all in that unique art style of Carle. I don't even know what's going on in the last page, I'm pretty sure that's a dead body.
Anyway, get this for your next baby shower, it makes the perfect gift to confuse somebody.
August 15, 2023
Nearly every page of this book shows some nonsense pictorially, lending creative-and-outrageous support to some words that a speaker might say.
Pictures and words make you think. Maybe make you laugh.
For example, one page shows a tennis player getting ready to hit a tennis ball. Words read:
What a funny-looking ball
Thought the tennis ace.
Only these next words accompany cleverly cap this two-page spread:
And [the tennis player] wound up
With applesauce
In her face.
You see, if you look carefull at that "tennis ball," you can tell it's a ball-shaped apple. Not a regular tennis ball at all.
FIVE STARS. Brilliant concept, words, and illustrations, Eric Carle!
Pictures and words make you think. Maybe make you laugh.
For example, one page shows a tennis player getting ready to hit a tennis ball. Words read:
What a funny-looking ball
Thought the tennis ace.
Only these next words accompany cleverly cap this two-page spread:
And [the tennis player] wound up
With applesauce
In her face.
You see, if you look carefull at that "tennis ball," you can tell it's a ball-shaped apple. Not a regular tennis ball at all.
FIVE STARS. Brilliant concept, words, and illustrations, Eric Carle!
November 26, 2018
I like this book because there's lots of silly things, and if you see this rabbit you'd think it was in the hat, but the rabbit's doing the magic trick and the person's in the hat. And as you see in the cover, instead of an egg, there's a banana peel, and inside of the banana peel, there's a duck. Ducks usually go in eggs, and not in banana peels and that's why it's called The Nonsense Show. And like most ducks they have webs feet, instead of regular feet without webs like we do, like people do.
October 27, 2020
This book was an unknown Eric Carle specialty that I had to pick up after a book about children's books recommended it.
I was not disappointed. At first, it certainly seems strange and wacky, but I quickly remembered that the book is written for children - not my cynical adult self! Children would find this book to be a hoot and would love to find all of the things that are wrong or out of place in it.
As expected, there is Mr. Carle's usual bright and colorful artwork to enjoy, and his entertaining sense of humor. A must read with little ones.
I was not disappointed. At first, it certainly seems strange and wacky, but I quickly remembered that the book is written for children - not my cynical adult self! Children would find this book to be a hoot and would love to find all of the things that are wrong or out of place in it.
As expected, there is Mr. Carle's usual bright and colorful artwork to enjoy, and his entertaining sense of humor. A must read with little ones.
August 11, 2021
This was the weirdest Eric Carle book we've read yet, and my kids are still laughing about it. I feel like it has hints of Shel Silverstein in it. There were things that made absolutely no sense at all, MANY pages of that! And now my kids are reading it upside down, which seems to work too for this ridiculous book. I think Eric Carle had a lot of extra pages of work and they didn't fit into his stories so he just squished them all randomly together into this book. Even the author's bio made us giggle.
October 20, 2019
Read this at an exhibit of Eric Carle’s art. There’s no plot, it’s just a series of situations that are opposite of what they should be, like a mouse chasing a cat. I suppose very little kids might find it funny, and that is who picture books are for, but while I like most of Carle’s books, ethics one just didn’t resonate with me. Part of it could be that some of It is a bit creepy, like a woman and a horse trading heads.
April 22, 2021
It should be comforting to know that even Eric Carle can have an off book. Instead it's just off-putting. I think it's the end-rhymes.
And the grumpiness (men and dogs barking at each other), the concussed boxer (hard to get excited about this, coming as it does after absolutely nothing that makes it ok), and just the general sense of wrong. I guess that's what "non-sense" is, but I think it needs some sense or grace to ground it.
The concept: yes.
And the grumpiness (men and dogs barking at each other), the concussed boxer (hard to get excited about this, coming as it does after absolutely nothing that makes it ok), and just the general sense of wrong. I guess that's what "non-sense" is, but I think it needs some sense or grace to ground it.
The concept: yes.
July 29, 2021
Not so much a story as a collection with short rhymes about nonsensical happenings (a bunny pulls a human from a hat, a kid in a kangaroo pouch, a snake with an extra head instead of a tail., and so on). My kids were mildly entertained by it, but they found some of the pages creepy. I guess it’s not quite our sense of humor.
My favorite page was the sheep clouds coming out of the train smokestack. And I was disappointed that the duck banana on the cover wasn’t in the actual book.
My favorite page was the sheep clouds coming out of the train smokestack. And I was disappointed that the duck banana on the cover wasn’t in the actual book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 176 reviews