Millions of Cats - A picture book written and illustrated by Wanda Gag in 1928. In 1929, the book was awarded the John Newbury Prize , becoming one of the few picture books to be awarded this prize. Millions of Cats is the oldest still-printed American picture book. [one]
| Millions of Cats | |
|---|---|
| Millions of cats | |
| Author | Wanda Gag |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Original language | English language |
| Original published | 1928 |
| Decor | Wanda Gag |
| Publisher | Coward-mccann |
| Pages | 32 |
| ISBN | 0-698-20091-8 |
| Next | The funny thing |
Content
- 1 plot
- 2 Legacy
- 3 Literature
- 4 notes
- 5 Links
Story
A hand-written text written by the author’s brother [2] tells the story of an elderly couple who come to realize that they are very lonely. My wife wants a cat to love her, so her husband goes in search of a beautiful cat to bring her home. At the end of the journey, far from home, he finds a hillside covered with “Cats here, cats there, Cats and kittens everywhere. Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, Millions, and billions, and trillions of cats ...” This rhythmic phrase is repeated then again several times throughout the story.
The old man wants to bring home the most beautiful of all these cats, but can not choose. Each one looks charming, so he decides to return home with all these cats that follow him. When he returns, his wife is horrified, instantly realizing what her husband has lost sight of: they cannot feed and take care of billions and trillions of cats. The wife suggests letting the cats decide for themselves which one should stay with them, asking: "Which of you is the cutest?" This question causes a terrible fight among cats, which scares the old man and the old woman so that they run away to their house.
Soon the outside becomes quiet. When they dare to leave, no sign of cats can be seen: obviously, they ate each other in a fierce struggle for the right to be the most beautiful. Then the old man notices one skinny cat that was hiding in a patch of tall grass. She survived because she did not consider herself beautiful, so other cats did not attack her. The couple takes this cat home, they feed it, bathe it, and when the days pass, they notice that it has become a smooth and beautiful cat - exactly the way they wanted.
Legacy
In this book, Wanda Gag first applied a two-page spread. Writer and reviewer Anita Silvey explained: "She used both pages to advance through the story, connecting them together with an illustration that covers the entire page spread: her favorite illustration is in the middle of the book - with an old man who carries cats through the hills." [3] This book remains popular among children, parents, as well as among critics. The 1001 Books for Children You Must Read Before You Grow Up Kaylee Davis calls this book an “enchanting fairy tale” and says: “A charming, folk style Gag, simple black and white illustrations, lyrical language and catchy refrain that children will happily repeat at every reading, make her a favorite family tale. " [four]
Literature
- Hoyle, Karen, Wanda Gag , Twayne Publishers, 1994;
- O'Hara, Megan, Wanda Gag's Girl Diary, 1908-1909: Portrait of a Young Artist , Blue Earth Books, 2001;
- Ray, Deborah Kogan, Wanda Gag: The Girl Who Lived to Paint , Viking, 2008.
Notes
- ↑ Millions of Cats by Wanda Gág . The wild place . Richland County Public Library. Date of treatment November 20, 2009. Archived July 14, 2011.
- ↑ Silvey, Anita (editor), Basic Guide to Books for Children and Their Creators , Houghton Mifflin, 2002, pp. 169–171;
- ↑ Anita Silvey , 100 Best Books for Children , Houghton Mifflin , Boston New York, 2004 ISBN 0-618-27889-3 pp. 18-19
- ↑ Julia Ecclesher (editor), Quentin Blake 1001 Books for Children That You Must Read Before You Grow Up , Universe Publishing , 2009, ISBN 978-0789318763 , p. 220.
Links
Top 100 Picture Books # 9 . School Library Journal Blog . Date of treatment May 20, 2012.