Taback, S. (1999). Joseph had a little overcoat. ILL. Simms Taback. New York: Viking. ISBN 0670878553

PLOT SUMMARY

As Joseph lives his eventful life he started out with an overcoat unfortunately it gets excessively used but thanks to his optimistic lookout on life he turned it into a jacket, then a vest, which turned into a scarf, then a necktie, followed by a handkerchief, finally a button but loses it and in the end writes a story about his overcoat. Needless to say Joseph was able to make something out of nothing.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

You get a sense of Joseph not being materialistic as you see in the pictures he has patches in his jeans and seems to live a simple life which could be attributed to his culture. The illustrations help showcase the setting is taking place at another time in the past and in another country (clothing, furniture/ decorations at main character’s house). The illustrations provides hints through the book as to what his next creation will be.

REVIEW EXCERPT (S)

-SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL (2000) “Striking gouache, watercolor, and collage illustrations are chock-full of witty details-letters to read, proverbs on the walls, even a fiddler on the roof.”

-BOOKLIST (2000) “true example of accomplished bookmaking”

-The Caldecott Medal (2000)

-Notable Children’s Book (Commended, 2000)

CONNECTIONS

Joseph Had a Little Overcoat could assist in teaching making predictions and inferencing, along with the following books.  

Munson, Derrick. ENEMY PIE. ISBN 978-0811827782

Kasza, Keiko. MY LUCKY DAY. ISBN 9780142404560

Willems, Mo. IM A FROG. ISBN 9781423183051