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Rip Van Winkle

Name: Rip Van Winkle
Author: Washington Irving
ISBN: 9781583419236

by Washington Irving

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Overview

Washington Irving's masterpiece has entranced readers for over 165 years, and though many artists have illustrated this classic, none has so perfectly captured the mysterious adventures of Rip and the boisterous crew of Dutchmen as the great American artist N. C. Wyeth. In ten richly colored paintings and twenty-six vivid line drawings, Wyeth brilliantly recreated the world of eighteent-century life in the Catskill Mountains.

Join henpecked farmer Rip Van Winkle as he escapes to the hills for a day of hunting. There he meets a strange dwarf and later a group of men playing ninepins. But when Rip drinks from their keg a few times, he falls into a deep sleep and wakes to find his beard full-grown and white, his wife gone, his daughter grown and married, and the whole country changed by the Revolution.

First published in 1921 and long unavailable, here is one of the bestloved American stories as illustrated by one of the most distinguished artists of our time.

A man who sleeps for twenty years in the Catskill Mountains wakes to a much-changed world.

Synopsis

Rip Van Winkle travels into the Catskill Mountains to spend the day, but somehow falls asleep and wakes up to a changed world. He had slept for 20 years! Where is his family? Find out what happened to Rip Van Winkle in this cautionary tale!

Beautifully illustrated, this classic tale will capture children’s interest and spark their imagination page after page, encouraging a love of reading that is vital to success in school and life!

Children will find hours of entertainment in the pages of these timeless tales! Our Brighter Child® Keepsake Stories are delightfully illustrated classic stories of magic, imagination, and inspiration that will delight children again and again! Collect all of the titles in this wonderful series today!

Select titles available in an English/Spanish bilingual version!

Publishers Weekly

Readers who haven't sat down recently with Irving's classic tale, or those who have yet to be introduced to it, are in for a treat. Written in 1820, the story of the slumbering Dutchman is remarkably fresh, told with verve and panache. In keeping with the caliber of the prose, Kelley's artwork echoes the classic tradition (and in fact occasionally brings to mind N. C. Wyeth). His light-dappled landscapes and portraits are drawn on a grand scale, and rendered in sombre, autumnal hues that hint at the story's innate mystery. Irving's puckish wit and droll descriptions are a delight. For more mature readers, the effort of navigating Irving's occasionally florid style is rewarded with many such morsels. Beautifully designed and elegantly type-set on high-quality stock, this book is as much a pleasure to hold as it is to read. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)

About the Author, Washington Irving

Carol Ottolenghi has written nonfiction and fiction books for adults and children for almost 20 years. In 1996, she won the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators Magazine Merit Honor Award. One of her stories was selected for Best of the Children's Market by the Institute of Children's Literature. She currently lives in Ohio.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

All the elements of Washington Irving's 1820 tale come into play in this retelling, but it's Moses's (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow) Hudson River backdrop that lends elegance to the volume. From the opening scene of great schooners winding their way downriver through the Catskill Mountains, the illustrations situate readers in an enchanted land. Moses lays the groundwork for lazy, good-natured Rip's transformation by portraying the protagonist propped up against a tree, whether in his own yard or just outside the town tavern where he gathers with his friends. Scorned by his wife one too many times, Rip heads for a hilltop with a vista of birches, pines and peak autumn colors. Moses successfully evokes the feeling of time stopped with his portrait of the mysterious band of revelers who lead Rip astray: the Dutchmen garbed in nearly clownish costume, a lone wisp of smoke escaping above the russet mountaintops, the ground in pale, neutral colors. The paintings aptly capture the momentous changes that occur during Rip's 20-year sleep (1769-1789): trees are larger, the tavern sign that once depicted King George III now displays General Washington, and new homes dot an otherwise familiar landscape. Small vignettes serve as close-ups to reveal the personalities of the various characters, though an illustration depicting Rip "surrounded by a troop of children, hanging on his coattails, clambering up his back" would have played up Rip's more positive attributes. Moses's tangible representation of Irving's setting and characters serves as a faithful introduction to the tale. Ages 4-up. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Children's Literature - Susie Wilde

Kelley uses his pastels to create amazing oil-like representations. His style, colors and light reflect the tones of the Flemish masters and revive the Hudson Valley life of the early Dutch settlers. Green predominates, giving a woodsy feel while creating a strong sense of setting and time. There is a softness of illustration that fits the long-ago fantasy story and that presents a dreamy representation of the main character who sleeps away so many years.

Children's Literature - Deborah Zink Roffino

Loads of lore-little people and the specter of Henry Hudson-float through this unabridged tale, buoyed by the museum quality watercolors. This classic tale of a ne'er-do-well who sleeps through the Revolutionary War teaches the clothing, language and mind-set of those hearty early Dutch settlers in the mountains above the Hudson River. Rackham's full page plates glow with autumn colors and exquisite detail.

Children's Literature

One does not know which to admire most, the story line that Washington Irving weaves or the artistry of the illustrator, Arthur Rackman. Readers of all ages have been enchanted with the story of Rip, who sleeps for twenty years, since it was first published in 1819. There have been many who have illustrated the story but none have captured the essence of the character and the beauty and magic of the Catskills as well as Arthur Rackman. You can see why Rackman has been recognized as the foremost illustrator of the 20th century when you view his paintings throughout the book. This deluxe edition of the American classic, with thirty-four of Rackman's paintings, makes a splendid gift to any child. 2000 (orig. 1819), Sea Star Books,

School Library Journal

Gr 1-3In this version of the classic tale, Rip Van Winkle escapes to the hills to avoid work, meets little men with long beards, parties until he falls asleep, and awakens 20 years later. All of this is told in a controlled vocabulary suitable for beginning readers. However, this retelling is so watered-down that most of the story's flavor and nuances are lost. Rip goes to the woods to hunt, but in Bergen's tale he goes fishing. In the original, Rip and the little men get drunk on liquor; here, he drinks cider. Cook's watercolor and gouache illustrations are lovely, but his talent is wasted here. Introducing children to the classics is a good idea, but not at the expense of the literature. Rip Van Winkle Little, Brown, 1988, retold and illustrated by John Howe, or Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle Puffin, 1994, retold and illustrated by Thomas Locker, are suitable for this audience while retaining the integrity of the original story.Elaine Lesh Morgan, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR