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Library | Call Number | Status |
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Searching... Silver Falls Library | JP KIMMEL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Dallas Public Library | + PRESCHOOL - KIMMEL | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
Stormy Kromer is an engineer who loves driving trains. But he has one problem: he can't find the right hat for a railroad man. He tries a derby, a cowboy hat, and a fireman's hat. Nothing works. Stormy tells his wife, Ida, not to worry, he'll figure out something. But Ida isn't worrying--she's thinking. If only Stormy would listen . . .
Brought to life by Andrea U'Ren's colorful paintings, this spirited story is loosely based on the actual creation in 1903 of the hat still used by railroad workers today.
Author Notes
Eric Kimmel was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1946. He received a bachelor's degree in English Literature from Lafayette College. He also has a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Illinois.
He was an elementary school teacher and college professor before becoming a full-time writer. He has published over fifty titles, many of which have won state and national awards. His titles "Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins" won the Caldecott Honor Medal, "The Chanukkah Guest" and "Gershon's Monster" won the Sydney Taylor Picture Book Award and "Anansi and the Talking Melon" won the Utah Children's Choice Award.
Kimmel travels nationally and internationally visiting schools and talking about his books and telling stories.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Set in the early 1900s, this engaging picture book introduces George "Stormy" Kromer, who loves everything about being a railroad engineer-except that he just can't find the right hat for the job. He tries several different toppers to no avail: a derby blows away; a cowboy hat is too large; a pressman's folded-newspaper hat catches on fire; and a fireman's helmet is just too heavy. With each failure, his wife tries to offer a suggestion, but he brushes her off, until Ida finally puts her foot down: "Either listen to what I have to say, or stop complaining." Stormy describes all the features of his ideal headgear, and Ida, an accomplished seamstress, designs and sews it for him. Soon orders are coming in from all over the world and Stormy and Ida open a factory. An author's note tells more about the real couple and how they developed the cap that railroad workers still wear today. U'Ren's vibrant paintings capture the palette and motion of Midwestern landscapes and city scenes. The illustrations have an unforced multiculturalism (Stormy's cowboy friend is African American; a Chinese-American storekeeper stacks hats; and a painting of a modern-day railroad yard shows individuals of different ethnicities). With a snappy, high-interest story and connections to hats, history, trains, gender equality, and industrialism, this book is a gem for libraries and classrooms.-Kathleen Kelly MacMillan, Carroll County Public Library, MD (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
Stormy can't find a hat that's right for a locomotive driver, even when his friends, including a cowboy and a fireman, offer him hats like theirs. He finally gives his wife a chance to solve the problem, and she creates a perfect cap--the one railroad people use today. Bold-outlined illustrations enhance the humor in this story based on real events. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Locomotive engineer Stormy Kromer needs a hat that can stand up to his job, but nothing works. Ida, his wife, tries to offer an idea, but Stormy interrupts and tells her not to worry her "pretty little head" about the problem. Instead, he turns to his buddies for advice. Each one--cowboy, pressman, fireman--recommends his hat, and each hat fails to work for Stormy. Meanwhile, Ida gets fed up listening to Stormy's complaints; she thinks it's time Stormy listens to her ideas for a change. When he finally does, not only does he get the perfect hat, he learns to listen. Gentle lessons about listening, respecting women and creative problem-solving are delivered free of didacticism in this timely story based on historical fact. U'Ren's witty, colorful illustrations enhance the playful tone. The depiction of early-20th-century work and home life is an added bonus. (author's note) (Picture book. 5-8) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Railroad engineer Stormy Kromer needs a new hat. He consults his friends, each of whom offers a suggestion based on his own occupation, with increasingly disastrous results. All the while Stormy ignores his wife Ida's help, until she puts her foot down (on the pedal of her sewing machine) and produces exactly what he's looking for. Kimmel draws upon his experience writing folk tales to adapt the history of the birth of the engineer's cap to the familiar, silly-story structure, while U'Ren maximizes the comedy with spot-on facial expressions of doleful determination and jubilant triumph. Stormy may get the laughs here, as well as the title recognition, but this is really Ida's tale. Threading period details through the illustrations (at story's end Ida wears the frock she has worked on throughout), U'Ren depicts her as woman who endures her husband's obstinate inanity while still getting on with her own business. An author's note completes the colorful picture of the couple's resourceful collaboration.--Barthelmess, Thom Copyright 2008 Booklist