Edward Lear (1812–1888)

Edward Lear's classic children's poem, originally included in his 1871 collection, Nonsense Songs, Stories, Botany, and Alphabets, is here presented in picture-book form, with lovely watercolor illustrations by Charlotte Voake. As the story unfolds, the titular strigine and feline heroes head to sea in a pea-green boat, serenading and then proposing to one another, before wedding in a tropical paradise. The poem concludes as the happy pair dances by the light of the moon...

Although long show more aware of The Owl and the Pussy-Cat, which was recently named Britain's favorite children's poem, I had never had the pleasure of reading it, before picking up this edition illustrated by Voake. I'm glad that I finally got around to it, as it is a wonderful little work, one that is immense fun to read to aloud, and one whose imaginative nonsense leaves the reader wanting more. Fortunately for them, popular British children's author Julia Donaldson recently penned a sequel, The Further Adventures of The Owl and the Pussy-Cat, also illustrated by Voake. show less

The Quangle Wangle shares his enormous hat with a multiplying cast of peculiar creatures in this silly, singsong tale from the celebrated author of THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT.

On the top of the Crumpetty Tree The Quangle Wangle sat, But his face you could not see, On account of his Beaver Hat. Poor Quangle Wangle. Life can get pretty lonely beneath a hat that's a hundred and two feet wide.

Lear's assemblage of whimsical creatures in this breezy poem rival those in his "The Owl and the show more Pussycat." Voce (Snarlyhissopus) pictures the Quangle Wangle Quee as a furry creature whose face is obscured by a flamboyant burgundy chapeau, and whose body resembles a cuddly brown koala. He loves his perch on a Crumpetty Tree but lacks companions. "For his Hat was a hundred and two feet wide,/ With ribbons and bibbons on every side." Only a thin smile is visible on the creature beneath the broad-brimmed hat, fringed in bells and baubles. Then two canaries seek permission to build their nest on his headgear, soon followed by a cavalcade of real and imaginary beasts: "And the Golden Grouse came there,/ And the Pobble who has no toes,/ And the small Olympian bear,/ And the Dong with a luminous nose." After settling in their nouveau chateau, the creatures revel "by the light of the Mulberry moon." Lear's poetry has lost no charm or magic over the decades, but the watercolor-and-ink renderings of the animals (all share wide-eyed, insomniac facial expressions) suffer from sober, straightforward interpretations. The Quangle Wangle Quee portrayed here wears a permanent grin, and what should be a dramatic emotional shift from his initial solitude to an overabundance of new friends never gets its due.

"And at night by the light of the Mulberry moon / They danced to the Flute of the Blue Baboon, / On the broad green leaves of the Crumpetty Tree, / And all were as happy as happy could be . . . ." show less

I was initially drawn to Jan Brett’s artwork for it’s Ukrainian and Eastern European flavour, but I love the fact that she explores other cultures for different books. Poems like Lear’s “The Owl and the Pussycat” do not focus on specific tropes or use culture-specific language, so they are the perfect literary medium to pair with an experimental style, which Brett does in this instance by choosing to place the Owl and the Pussycat in a decidedly South American setting. Even though show more Brett moves away from her signature detailed-border style with this book I still found that the artwork tells of the couple’s journey across the ocean very effectively. She uses the frame of the ocean to give montages of sea-life and really pushes the boundaries of composition to give Lear’s simplistic poem more depth, picturing the Owl catching dinner in the ocean and the Pussycat’s insistent attitude that they marry. The story may not have the unique draw of Brett’s Ukrainian folktales, but it is a charming addition to her oeuvre none-the-less! show less

I've read several illustrated versions of the Owl and the Pussycat, and hands-down, this one has the MOST GORGEOUS illustrations I've ever seen! My only complaint about this book is that it wasn't bigger, because the illustrations really do merit closer study (the dimensions of this book are relatively small, the pages are not paper, but cardboard, so this is a book designed to stand up to wear and tear from smaller kids, and these kinds of books usually tend to be smaller length and show more width-wise for easier handling by smaller hands)

There is not one single page that does not have beautiful illustrations. The feathers on the owl are individually-drawn, and the cat looks too adorable in her dress. The poem itself might be silly, but the illustrations really do bring the words to life. show less