The Scarecrow's Hat

by Ken Brown

Overview

In this classroom favorite, a resourceful chicken enlists her farm friends to get a coveted hat from Scarecrow. A delightful circular tale and fall read-aloud!

Chicken really admires Scarecrow's straw hat. Scarecrow would gladly trade his hat for a walking stick to rest his tired arms. Chicken doesn't have a walking stick to trade—but she knows someone who does.

Author-illustrator Ken Brown pairs vivid, realistic watercolors with an inventive plot, engaging sequencing, and repetition to tell a charming circular story packed with relatable themes of friendship, bartering, and problem-solving. This award-winning title is an ideal story time choice for autumn and harvest themes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781561452408
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	03/06/2001
Edition description:	1 ED
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,098,369
Product dimensions:	9.05(w) x 10.89(h) x 0.34(d)
Lexile:	AD490L (what's this?)
Age Range:	2 - 5 Years

About the Author

Ken Brown studied illustration at Birmingham Art College in England and wrote and illustrated numerous children's books. He lived with his wife, Ruth Brown, also a well-known children's illustrator, in England until his death.

Editorial Reviews

In this gentle picture book with an old-fashioned feel, an enterprising chicken pulls off a hat trick of sorts when she finds a way to obtain a chapeau she admires. Chicken would love to have Scarecrow's straw hat for her very own. Scarecrow says he would gladly swap his headdress for a walking stick, something that Chicken does not possess. So Chicken sets out to visit Badger, who does have a walking stick. Trouble is Badger wants to make a trade, too, for something else Chicken can't provideDa ribbon. Chicken calls on an array of animal pals until she at last makes the deal that leads her back to Scarecrow's hat, via a chain reaction of satisfying swaps. British author/illustrator Brown's (Dilly-Dally and the Nine Secrets) story proceeds at a leisurely pace, allowing young readers time to join in Chicken's creative problem-solving. A couple of missteps in logic (a sheep is happy to have a pair of broken glasses; Scarecrow is the only inanimate object to speak) don't mar the easygoing mood. The true standout here, however, is Brown's artworkDhis airy, sun-dappled watercolors evoke a pleasant summer day. Ages 2-6. (Mar.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

PreS-Gr 2-Chicken admires Scarecrow's straw hat, and her eyes light up when he says he would gladly exchange it for a walking stick to rest his arms. She doesn't have a walking stick, but she knows someone who does. Badger will trade his stick for a ribbon to tie his door open. Crow is willing to give up his ribbon for some wool to make a soft nest and so on, until Chicken comes full circle around the farm visiting all the animals and is able to get Scarecrow's straw hat for a nest. Children will enjoy the repetition and refrain. Vibrant watercolors simultaneously depict the natural beauty of a blooming meadow in spring and the fine execution of expressions on the animals' faces and in their body language. Pair this satisfying, funny offering with Pat Hutchins's Rosie's Walk (Macmillan, 1968) for a winning program.-Wanda Meyers-Hines, Ridgecrest Elementary, Huntsville, AL Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

A brilliant watercolorist, Brown sets this familiarly patterned tale in sunny, poppy-strewn rural locales, and populates it with animals that are at once wonderfully lifelike and comically expressive. Chicken has her eye on Scarecrow's straw hat, which Scarecrow is willing to trade for a walking stick. Badger has a stick, and is willing to trade that for a ribbon. Crow has a ribbon . . . and so on, until Chicken reaches Donkey, whose yen for a feather flyswatter finally triggers the string of trades. Chicken ends up with the hat-perfect, as it turns out, for a cozy nest-" 'And I wouldn't swap it for anything!' " Full-bleed, double-paged spreads tell most of the story, with a set of vignettes in the middle to move the action back along the track. Fans of Brown's hysterical The Wolf Is Coming! (1998), written by Elizabeth MacDonald, will find this a bit more restrained, but with a similarly broad streak of silliness. Great for storytelling, with big beautiful pictures for a topper. (Picture book. 5-7)

Kirkus Reviews

"A brilliant watercolorist, Brown sets this familiarly patterned tale in sunny, poppy-strewn rural locales, and populates it with animals that are at once wonderfully lifelike and comically expressive. . . . Great for storytelling, with big beautiful pictures for a topper." —Kirkus Reviews

"A gentle picture book with an old-fashioned feel. . . . Brown's story proceeds at a leisurely pace, allowing young readers time to join in Chicken's creative problem-solving. . . . The true standout here. . . is Brown's artwork-his airy sun-dappled watercolors evoke a pleasant summer day." —Publishers Weekly

"Problem solving takes center stage in this story of how a resourceful chicken, every bit as determined as the Little Red Hen, barters for a scarecrow's hat. . . . Realistic watercolors greatly enhance this plucky, humorous tale." —Booklist

"Children will enjoy the repetition and refrain. Vibrant watercolors simultaneously depict the natural beauty of a blooming meadow in spring and the fine execution of expressions on the animals' faces and in their body language. . . . satisfying, funny." —School Library Journal

From the Publisher