The Owl and the Pussycat
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
Owl sets out to woo Pussycat in a boat laden with fruit from their Caribbean island and with a guitar at his side, ready for serenading.
As they sail off across the sea, another story unfolds in the water beneath the boat. One by one, exotic sea creatures swim into the picture and small yellow fish seems to be looking for someone.
Jan Brett brings the magic of the Caribbean to her exquisitely detailed illustrations of Edward Lear’s charming poem.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This version of Lear's popular poem is distinguished by its very Victorian but unfussy illustrations, which focus not only on the familiar lovestruck pair, but on their very model of a Grand Tour. After festively boarding a luxurious ``pea-green'' boat decorated with gilded carvings, the couple--together with assorted animal families--ride gondolas, sail past the Statue of Liberty and land on a tropical island where passengers and crew celebrate their nuptials. In Todd's masterful renditions, these elegant, genteel settings and costumes are almost photographic in their clarity. Models of propriety abound: sumptuous teas are served, and guests gather for a shipboard musicale where the owl ``sang to a small guitar.'' The dapper creature is resplendent in a plaid deerstalker cap and (later) in tails with blue spats, while his perfectly beguiling mate dazzles with her lace bustles and parasols. Detailed without being cluttered, the illustrations are inventive without stretching the text too far in this perfectly satisfying variation on an old favorite. All ages.
