Do You Have a Hat?

PreS-Gr 2-Spinelli provides some great entertainment in this rhyming story that showcases the famous headgear of individuals such as Igor Stravinsky, Carmen Miranda, Abraham Lincoln, Nat Love, and Johnny Appleseed. For example, "Francisco de Goya had a hat, /a hat with candles on the brim-/a clever hat that suited him-/that made a chandelier of light/for painting far into the night." From its opening lines ("Do YOU have a hat?/Something fuzzy, warm, and red, /to keep the snowflakes off your head?") to its closing ones naming different toppers ("A magic hat? A cap? A crown?/A country hat? A hat for town?"), children will be enchanted and engaged. They will certainly join in on the title refrain on each page. Valerio's illustrations are done in acrylics primarily with bright shades of orange, blue, green, and red. His stylized figures are humorous, with exaggerated facial features. The endpapers offer brief tidbits about the people who are represented here. Overall, this original and amusing book is a great marriage of text and artwork. It will make a terrific storytime addition, either by itself or combined with other clothing-related selections such as Jonathan London's Froggy Gets Dressed (Viking, 1992) or Joan Nodset's classic Who Took the Farmer's Hat? (HarperCollins, 1963).-Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA Copyright 2004 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.