Buy My Hats!

by Dave Horowitz

Frank and Carl have plenty of hats to sell, and their booth is open for business . . . but no one is buying! Everyone is crazy about Blue Monkey?s skateboards, Mister Pig?s Cup O? Mud and Big Ox?s remote-control robot cell phones?so what?s their secret? Dave Horowitz?s cast of crazy characters is sure to delight young readers. The world of retail has never been more entertaining than in the story of these two friends determined to understand what on earth their customers really need.

Genres: Picture Books, Humor, Animals, Childrens, Business, Money

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 10, 2010

About the author

My name is dave horowitz. I grew up in Smithtown, New York in the 1970s. Instead of paying attention in school I drew pictures of my teachers. Then I went to a famous art college in Rhode Island and studied coloring.

In 1992 I graduated and went to Oregon to play drums and drink coffee. Then I moved to New York City and worked next door to the Twin Towers. Then I learned how to climb rocks and got fired.

Then I climbed rocks.

I moved up to the Hudson Valley and then to California and then to New Hampshire and then back to the Hudson Valley. Then I got a job as a “professional” rock climber. Then I got too old for that.

I still live in the Hudson Valley where I write and illustrate picture books. Also, I'm a paramedic. So far so good…

Reviews

[Kathryn Hogan]

I absolutely adored this book. The plot was simple, but very clever. No one would buy the hats they were selling, and the guys could not figure out why. They had almost given up till it started raining. Once it had started raining everyone was buying left and right. It proves that end the end people will buy what they need. The story was very cute and I would love to discuss with the children how they felt about the ending of the story. I also liked the usage of numbers there were many different ways to use this book. This book would be great for second graders working on addition and subtraction.

[Becky]

First sentence: Buy my hats! Monday. Down at the City Market, Frank and Carl got ready to sell some hats. "Step right up," said Carl. "Who wants to buy a hat?" But nobody did. Frank and Carl sold only ONE hat all day.

Premise/plot: Readers spend a week with Frank and Carl as they try to sell hats. All week long, Frank and Carl witness other businesses succeed while theirs fails. Every day they ask the more successful business their SECRET for success...every day they hear something new. (For example, Mister Pig is all about advertising his brand.) Will these two ever learn how to sell hats?

My thoughts: I liked it. I think I may like the premise more than the actual book. But. I still really like it overall. The author includes a note about the inspiration for the story.

In elementary school we were given an assignment to choose a fictitious product and create an advertisement for it. One student brought in a hat. Her poster was just the words BUY MY HATS! I thought it was brilliant. The teacher disagreed and gave her an F. Thirty years later, I can't even remember the student (who I'm sure grew up to become an international hat magnate), but I still remember those three little words: Buy My Hats!

Text: 4 out of 5
Illustrations: 3 out of 5
Total: 7 out of 10

[Mariah]

Interesting to have a great children's book that makes the concept of supply and demand "real" for small children, yet the actual book itself is not easy to attain, as it is in short supply. Out of print.

[Terryann]

Buy My Hats!
Horowitz, Dave. Buy My Hats!. Putnam. June 2010. F. ISBN 978-0-399-25275-4. $16.99.

Gr K-2
When Frank and Carl set up a hat stand at the City Market, they expect to sell lots of hats. They are disappointed however, and watch sadly on as their neighbors make money hand over fist. Monkey sells skateboards, Pig sells Cup O' Mud and sheep sells Remote Control Robot Cell Phones. When Frank and Carl ask their neighbors for the secret to success, they're repeatedly told that the products are in demand. Frank and Carl lower their prices daily until something happens that finally makes everyone in town want a hat.
Horowitz, with his trademark wit, makes readers laugh out loud with the wacky pairing of a fish and a bear as best friends. Illustrations are at once simple and sophisticated, colorful and thought provoking and include numerous amusing thought bubbles supplemental to the text. Best for independent reading due to the complex illustrations. Kids will want to read it again and again to see what they missed the last time!

[Renee]

In the City Market, Frank and Carly (a bear and a fish) set up a stand to sell hats. Unfortunately, their hats don’t sell despite trying the techniques from other sellers (advertising). Finally, when it starts raining, their hats are in demand. However, it was strange that they say they don’t know why their hats are selling, but they wrote “they’re rainproof” on their stall after it started raining. This would be useful for introducing supply vs. demand or advertising techniques. The illustrations are black pencil, charcoal on newsprint with color added digitally, making it almost a comic book style.

[Melanie Hetrick]

Frank and Carl set up a hatstand at the City Market. Problem is, they aren't selling any hats. They slash the prices but still, no hat sales. The Monkey next door is selling out of skateboards. Of course, everyone wants skateboards! And then there's Pig's Cup-O-Mud. Who can resist a Cup-O-Mud?

On Friday it starts to rain. Now everyone wants hats! Maybe next week they should sell umbrellas, too.

A humorous story, highly recommended for storytime.

[Luann]

This is cute and colorful and teaches about the effects of advertising and why people choose to buy certain products and not others. I can't think of too many other picture books that are both cute and colorful and teach about a market economy! My favorite part, though, was the author's note on the back flap about how he came up with the idea for this story.

[Kate Hastings]

Grades 2-5. Very simple story about a bear and a fish who cannot seem to sell any of their hats. Other vendors are doing gangbusters and attribute their success to different marketing techniques. Finally the "perfect storm" presents itself and the hat salesmen are able to find buyers for their product. Great for a unit on economics that goes beyond simple supply and demand.

[Dolly]

This is an entertaining story about the capricious whims of the market, with supply and demand being depicted against the fickleness of fads. The narrative is entertaining to read aloud and the illustrations are cartoonish and colorful. We enjoyed reading this book together and we thought the ending was quite humorous.

[Libby]

This was a cute story about two aspiring businessmen (well, a business bear and a business fish) who can't quite figure out the secret of success. In the end, a rainstorm comes to their aid.

We reread this one several times, and I think the kids liked the ads for the protagonists' competitors and all the conversations taking place on the pictures as much as anything.

[Joanne Zienty]

Poor Frank and Carl just aren't moving the merchandise. Is it their product? Their advertising? Their marketing campaign? Could be a funny introduction to the idea of sales for a class learning about supply, demand, goods, services, wants and needs ... or just a funny read aloud with big, bold illustrations that add to the fun.

[The Brothers]

A delightful story of two friends who set up a hat stand only to discover that no one will buy their hats. Everyone buys skateboards, remote control robot phones, even cups o' mud, but not hats! Their fortunes change when a rainstorms hits and then everyone wants what they are selling. A lovely story and great introduction to the economics of a free market!

Awesome illustrations.

[Pam]

Friends try to sell hats but no one wants to buy them. Characters buy all sorts of other crazy things and readers learn about marketing and advertising. Finally a weather event drives traffic to their stall and they learn about supply and demand too.
Horowitz slips information in along with the humor. Brightly colored illustrations help emphasize the message.

[Diana Hanke]

"Buy My Hats" presents a great look at advertising, selling, and buying. Frank and Carl spend a full week attempting to sell hats while other products go like hot cakes all around them. A fun read and a great way to show kids why they buy and how they are convinced to buy.

[Lbrown107]

I loved this book because it was the first one I came across that could be used to teach the concept of consumer needs/demands and producers! It also has some math involved so students could be solving addition and subtraction problems as well throughout the book.

[Denise Kettering]

It is unfortunate that this book is difficult to locate (out-of-print) because it is a delightful book that helps to explain supply and demand to kids in a humorous way. The pictures are a lot of fun and the characters are entertaining. Great book!

[Diana]

Distilling down the story of modern day retail into a picture book never looked so good! So clever! Advertising...trendiness...popularity...pricing...it's all here! Excellent book for kids interested in starting their own business someday. Maybe it should also be required in business school! lol

[Emmeline Guest]

Cute and slightly silly. Could work well with a Letter "H" storytime, or a k-2 grade assignment on advertisement and marketing :)

[Yulidy Decena]

cute fun book about selling hats. I'm not sure what the students can learn about this book but it was a cute book.

[Jen]

Frank and Carl have a lot of hats to sell, but no one seems to want to buy them...that is until it rains!

[Nicole]

Nice intro to marketing and consumer behavior via picture book.

[Mary]

Recommended by kids for NYRA 2013, this book perhaps in intended to introduce some business concepts to young readers, but I wonder if it is effective?

[Barb Middleton]

Could be used with a lesson on advertising.

[Rachel]

My son really enjoyed this book, so much so that we might have to buy it. A really cute book to read out loud with younger kids.

[Michelle Gray]

Colorful and fun!

Themes: hats

[Corinne]

A silly book about being a salesman. cute illustrations.

[Melki]

Frank and Carl get a lesson on the whims of the buying public when they open their hat stand at the local market. Cheerful, colorful illustrations by the author.

Happy Mad Hatter Day to all!

[Amanda Harrison]

yes, ok. Not a bad pairing with caps for sale but otherwise not a necessary title

[Doug]

Solid pick from the library. Kids want to read this one over and over.

[Library To-Go]

3/11/26: Little Magnolias & Pediatrust