Peggy Rathmann
Author of Good Night, Gorilla
About the Author
Image credit: peggyrathmann.com
Works by Peggy Rathmann
Associated Works
The 20th-Century Children's Book Treasury: Picture Books and Stories to Read Aloud (1998) — Contributor — 1,821 copies, 14 reviews
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Rathmann, Peggy
- Legal name
- Rathmann, Margaret Crosby
- Birthdate
- 1953-03-04
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Atelier Lack
Otis Parsons School of Design - Occupations
- artist
illustrator
writer - Awards and honors
- Cuffie Award (1991)
- Short biography
- Ms. Rathman was born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she attended the Atelier Lack, studying classical painting. Later, she attended the Otis Parsons School of Design in Los Angeles, where she studied children's book illustration with Barbara Bottman. Although Ms. Rathmann claims she was a shy child who never bit, Bootsie Barker liiks a lot like the artist's baby pictures. Booksellers voted Peggy Rathmann the "most promising new author" of 1991 in Publisher Weekly's annual Cuffie Awards. [adapted from Bootsie Barker bites (1992)
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
- Places of residence
- St. Paul, Minnesota, USA (Birth)
Nicasio, California, USA - Associated Place (for map)
- USA
Members
Reviews
1998 December 26
This was a Christmas present from me to Mike the year we were waiting for the Possum. The Spouse had been fond of saying that the hamsters came and threw a party and wrecked the place while he was sleeping, so I gave him a book in which the hamsters came and got into trouble.
***
2001 Jan 13
One of the most beloved picture books we have. I don't know how it came up the other night, but I told the girls why I'd given their father a copy of it. So then Tash wanted to read it again show more but she couldn't find our copy (I suspect it is packed away with other toddler delights). Last night we went to the library and she asked me to get it for her. She read it while the Spouse and I were fixing supper. After supper she wanted to read it together, with me providing the father's voice, and she, the hamsters. And then Veronica came in, and she hadn't read it in forever, so we all went through it again. We had to look in amazement at the pictures of the book within the book, we had to find the ten little hamsters in every picture (the girls didn't remember that they are each doing a distinctive thing in each spread [like 9 is always up high, and 8 is always hiding his/her head under something]), and we had to laugh in delight at the stuffed gorilla, and the stuffed [b:Officer Buckle & Gloria|857445|Officer Buckle & Gloria|Peggy Rathmann|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348468943s/857445.jpg|325563], and at the shadows of [b:Good Night, Gorilla|773276|Good Night, Gorilla|Peggy Rathmann|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347227009s/773276.jpg|2992071] in the background.
A good picture book delights a child on repeated reading. A brilliant picture book delights adults and children on repeated viewing. This is one of the ten best picture books of all time.
Personal copy show less
This was a Christmas present from me to Mike the year we were waiting for the Possum. The Spouse had been fond of saying that the hamsters came and threw a party and wrecked the place while he was sleeping, so I gave him a book in which the hamsters came and got into trouble.
***
2001 Jan 13
One of the most beloved picture books we have. I don't know how it came up the other night, but I told the girls why I'd given their father a copy of it. So then Tash wanted to read it again show more but she couldn't find our copy (I suspect it is packed away with other toddler delights). Last night we went to the library and she asked me to get it for her. She read it while the Spouse and I were fixing supper. After supper she wanted to read it together, with me providing the father's voice, and she, the hamsters. And then Veronica came in, and she hadn't read it in forever, so we all went through it again. We had to look in amazement at the pictures of the book within the book, we had to find the ten little hamsters in every picture (the girls didn't remember that they are each doing a distinctive thing in each spread [like 9 is always up high, and 8 is always hiding his/her head under something]), and we had to laugh in delight at the stuffed gorilla, and the stuffed [b:Officer Buckle & Gloria|857445|Officer Buckle & Gloria|Peggy Rathmann|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348468943s/857445.jpg|325563], and at the shadows of [b:Good Night, Gorilla|773276|Good Night, Gorilla|Peggy Rathmann|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347227009s/773276.jpg|2992071] in the background.
A good picture book delights a child on repeated reading. A brilliant picture book delights adults and children on repeated viewing. This is one of the ten best picture books of all time.
Personal copy show less
Impulse grab at the library because who could resist that title and cover? Not me! The verse needs to be read aloud to be appreciated, as it scans awkwardly on the page but works when read with full expression. The art is bewitching, and the story is both funny and full of heart. A winner for the whole family, because yes, irl babies do crawl away (though generally not so far) and older siblings are heroes.
An excellent example of working the illustrations in a picture book to their maximum effect. This story is about a clever gorilla who sneaks out of the zoo at night. He snags the keys off the zookeeper's belt as the man passes, and lets himself out of his cage. Then he silently follows along behind the zookeeper, releasing each animal just after the zookeeper wishes it good night. By the time the man is leaving the zoo to head to his own house, a quiet chain of animals is following along show more behind him, starting with the gorilla and including such beasties as a lion, a giraffe, and a hyena. They continue with him all the way into his house, to his bedroom, and sleep on his floor, all without notice - until his wife says good night, and she gets far more than just one reply back. This charmingly quirky story is told almost entirely without words. The author uses no text except brief words in dialogue boxes, and that consists of the two words, good night (actually, the mouse says a bit more, in tiny font). The story is cleverly delivered through the pictures, and the expressions on the character's faces, and the interaction with the audience. For instance, the surprise on the zookeeper's wife's face when she hears multiple responses clearly indicates how she is feeling, and imparts a lot of comedy to the story. Also, the gorilla looks right at the reader and gives us a shushing gesture with his fingers, showing us that he knows what he is doing is sneaky, and also asking us to be complicit in his adventures by not telling on him.
We are accomplices in more than one way. The absence of a narrative invites the reader to create her own. This is such a great book to inspire creative writing at an early age. Children reading the book will know what is occurring, but the urge to put into words what they see happening on the page is irresistible. There are not many books like this; wordless books, when done well, offer a unique and important reading experience for children. They are not only reading a story, they are helping to create it. And this book is done well. My girls have such a laughing good time when we read it. From both a parent's and an educator's perspective, I like this book. show less
We are accomplices in more than one way. The absence of a narrative invites the reader to create her own. This is such a great book to inspire creative writing at an early age. Children reading the book will know what is occurring, but the urge to put into words what they see happening on the page is irresistible. There are not many books like this; wordless books, when done well, offer a unique and important reading experience for children. They are not only reading a story, they are helping to create it. And this book is done well. My girls have such a laughing good time when we read it. From both a parent's and an educator's perspective, I like this book. show less
This book’s lesson on its most surface level is that of safety, but the lasting message is its theme of partnership, which is great for children. Officer Buckle is upset when he learns that Gloria has been performing behind him because he feels that the children aren’t listening to him and his safety tips. As a result he sends Gloria alone, but she has nothing to do when he is not with her. They are more than friends; they are partners, better together than alone. For me I think the show more illustrations were very emphatic of this element, especially when Gloria sits alone on stage and all the other elements of the drawing (specifically the children in their seats) were the same as on the first page before Gloria did anything unique. It just reiterates that she and Officer Buckle are equal when separate and better together. Also, speaking of the illustrations, I want to mention that they were a PHENOMENAL interpretation of the story; in fact, I don’t think the story could have made much sense without them. Rathmann’s drawings were essential to the plot line, doling out essential information and evoking a comical mood throughout. show less
Lists
Awards
You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 10
- Also by
- 2
- Members
- 19,320
- Popularity
- #1,125
- Rating
- 4.2
- Reviews
- 548
- ISBNs
- 172
- Languages
- 8
- Favorited
- 3