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Clementina's Cactus
Keats departs from his traditional style for his one and only wordless picture book, Clementina's Cactus. Clementina and her father are out for a walk in the desert when Clementina discovers a lone cactus, all shriveled and prickly. But Clementina discovers there is something beautiful hiding inside that thick skin.
40 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1982
2 people are currently reading
99 people want to read
About the author
Ezra Jack Keats
122 books373 followersEzra Jack Keats was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. He won the 1963 Caldecott Medal for illustrating The Snowy Day, which he also wrote. Many of Ezra’s stories are about a group of friends growing up in the city. The neighborhood they live in looks like the streets where Ezra grew up in Brooklyn, New York.
He was born Jacob Ezra Katz, the third child of Polish-Jewish immigrants Benjamin Katz and Augusta Podgainy. The family was very poor. Jack, as he was known, was artistic from an early age, and joyfully made pictures out of whatever scraps of wood, cloth and paper that he could collect. Benjamin Katz, who worked as a waiter, tried to discourage his son, insisting that artists lived terrible, impoverished lives. Nevertheless, he sometimes brought home tubes of paint, claiming, "A starving artist swapped this for a bowl of soup."
With little encouragement at home, Keats sought validation for his skills at school and learned about art at the public library. He received a medal for drawing on graduating from Junior High School 149. Although unimpressive-looking, the medal meant a great deal to him, and he kept it his entire life. Keats attended Thomas Jefferson High School, where he won a national contest run by Scholastic for an oil painting depicting hobos warming themselves around a fire. At his graduation, in January 1935, he was to receive the senior class medal for excellence in art. Two days before the ceremony, Benjamin Katz died in the street of a heart attack. When Keats identified his father's body, he later wrote, "I found myself staring deep into his secret feelings. There in his wallet were worn and tattered newspaper clippings of the notices of the awards I had won. My silent admirer and supplier, he had been torn between his dread of my leading a life of hardship and his real pride in my work."
His father's death curtailed his dream of attending art school. For the remainder of the Great Depression until he was drafted for military service in World War II, Keats took art classes when he could and worked at a number of jobs, most notably as a mural painter under the New Deal program the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and as a comic book illustrator. At Fawcett Publications, he illustrated backgrounds for the Captain Marvel comic strip. He spent his military service (1943-45) designing camouflage patterns for the U.S. Army Air Force. In 1947, he petitioned to legally change his name to Ezra Jack Keats, in reaction to the anti-Semitic prejudice of the time.
Keats spent most of 1949 painting and studying in Paris, realizing a long-deferred dream of working as an artist. After returning to New York, he focused on earning a living as a commercial artist, undoubtedly influenced by his father's anxieties. His illustrations began to appear in Reader's Digest, The New York Times Book Review, Collier's and Playboy, and on the jackets of popular books. His work was displayed in Fifth Avenue store windows, and the Associated American Artists Gallery, in New York City, gave him exhibitions in 1950 and 1954.
In his unpublished autobiography, Keats wrote, "I didn't even ask to get into children's books." In fact, he was asked to do so by Elizabeth Riley of Crowell, which brought out his first children's title, Jubilant for Sure, written by Elisabeth Hubbard Lansing, in 1954. To prepare for the assignment, Keats went to rural Kentucky, where the story takes place, to sketch. Many children's books followed, including the Danny Dunn adventure series, by Jay Williams and Raymond Abrashkin, and an ethnographic series by Tillie S. Pine and Joseph Levine, beginning with The Indians Knew. All told, Keats illustrated nearly 70 books written by other authors.
In 1983, Keats died at the age of 67 following a heart attack. His last projects included designing the sets for a musical version of his book The Trip (which would later become the stage production Captain Louie), designing
He was born Jacob Ezra Katz, the third child of Polish-Jewish immigrants Benjamin Katz and Augusta Podgainy. The family was very poor. Jack, as he was known, was artistic from an early age, and joyfully made pictures out of whatever scraps of wood, cloth and paper that he could collect. Benjamin Katz, who worked as a waiter, tried to discourage his son, insisting that artists lived terrible, impoverished lives. Nevertheless, he sometimes brought home tubes of paint, claiming, "A starving artist swapped this for a bowl of soup."
With little encouragement at home, Keats sought validation for his skills at school and learned about art at the public library. He received a medal for drawing on graduating from Junior High School 149. Although unimpressive-looking, the medal meant a great deal to him, and he kept it his entire life. Keats attended Thomas Jefferson High School, where he won a national contest run by Scholastic for an oil painting depicting hobos warming themselves around a fire. At his graduation, in January 1935, he was to receive the senior class medal for excellence in art. Two days before the ceremony, Benjamin Katz died in the street of a heart attack. When Keats identified his father's body, he later wrote, "I found myself staring deep into his secret feelings. There in his wallet were worn and tattered newspaper clippings of the notices of the awards I had won. My silent admirer and supplier, he had been torn between his dread of my leading a life of hardship and his real pride in my work."
His father's death curtailed his dream of attending art school. For the remainder of the Great Depression until he was drafted for military service in World War II, Keats took art classes when he could and worked at a number of jobs, most notably as a mural painter under the New Deal program the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and as a comic book illustrator. At Fawcett Publications, he illustrated backgrounds for the Captain Marvel comic strip. He spent his military service (1943-45) designing camouflage patterns for the U.S. Army Air Force. In 1947, he petitioned to legally change his name to Ezra Jack Keats, in reaction to the anti-Semitic prejudice of the time.
Keats spent most of 1949 painting and studying in Paris, realizing a long-deferred dream of working as an artist. After returning to New York, he focused on earning a living as a commercial artist, undoubtedly influenced by his father's anxieties. His illustrations began to appear in Reader's Digest, The New York Times Book Review, Collier's and Playboy, and on the jackets of popular books. His work was displayed in Fifth Avenue store windows, and the Associated American Artists Gallery, in New York City, gave him exhibitions in 1950 and 1954.
In his unpublished autobiography, Keats wrote, "I didn't even ask to get into children's books." In fact, he was asked to do so by Elizabeth Riley of Crowell, which brought out his first children's title, Jubilant for Sure, written by Elisabeth Hubbard Lansing, in 1954. To prepare for the assignment, Keats went to rural Kentucky, where the story takes place, to sketch. Many children's books followed, including the Danny Dunn adventure series, by Jay Williams and Raymond Abrashkin, and an ethnographic series by Tillie S. Pine and Joseph Levine, beginning with The Indians Knew. All told, Keats illustrated nearly 70 books written by other authors.
In 1983, Keats died at the age of 67 following a heart attack. His last projects included designing the sets for a musical version of his book The Trip (which would later become the stage production Captain Louie), designing
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
January 23, 2021
I picked this up knowing the author was Ezra Jack Keats and what a treat, what a wonder. I am used to seeing inner city worlds with keats, somewhat bleak, but he turns his story upside down setting this in a desert as a wordless story. His art does all the talking.
The artwork appears to be watercolors and the desert feels hot and bleak. There is a squat little girl walking in the desert with red hair. She looks crazy and then there is a tall lean bean pole of a man with crazy red hair that might be her dad. They are walking in the desert. The girl finds a cactus and she is memorized by the sad little thing. It's starting to rain and the father pulls the girl inside. The colors go from earthy reds, yellows and hot colors, to cool blues and darker shades. It's so neat. The storm passes and the girl checks back on her cactus and there are beautiful flowers on it now.
The story gave me a sense of wonder. I figured what was coming and it still hit me anyway. A great story.
I do miss my nephew making up his own story for the wordless books. They were pretty great.
The artwork appears to be watercolors and the desert feels hot and bleak. There is a squat little girl walking in the desert with red hair. She looks crazy and then there is a tall lean bean pole of a man with crazy red hair that might be her dad. They are walking in the desert. The girl finds a cactus and she is memorized by the sad little thing. It's starting to rain and the father pulls the girl inside. The colors go from earthy reds, yellows and hot colors, to cool blues and darker shades. It's so neat. The storm passes and the girl checks back on her cactus and there are beautiful flowers on it now.
The story gave me a sense of wonder. I figured what was coming and it still hit me anyway. A great story.
I do miss my nephew making up his own story for the wordless books. They were pretty great.
March 5, 2020
This story told in illustrations was beautiful. The rain makes changes in the plants when the girl and her father go inside for shelter.
It's a beautiful picture book.
It's a beautiful picture book.
May 26, 2014
A wordless picture book, which tells the story of a young girl who lives in a desert shack, and is curious about a cactus growing nearby. After a nightly storm, she finds a splendid surprise in the morning.
April 1, 2017
Sweet and beautiful and strange and magical
October 2, 2018
It’s fun for Kait to be able to “read” a story without having to know how to read words. That said, it doesn’t really have as much reread value as I’d like.
April 2, 2013
I had never even heard of this story before finding on the Ezra Jack Keats website. Since I live in the Southwest, I'm always looking for books on the topic for me and my son. I had no idea that it was a wordless picture book (apparently it was the only one Keats ever made), but I enjoyed the cute story about Clementina and her father. They find a cactus in the desert and the little girl is so intrigued by it. They have to leave because of an upcoming thunderstorm, but the little girl can't get the cactus out of her head. The next morning she goes out to find that the cactus has flowered overnight and looks very pretty. Keats' illustrations are gorgeous watercolor paintings that really capture the look of the desert, and I love all the bright splotches of color. My favorite illustrations is the nighttime scene in the desert, and the reverse illustration is featured on the front/back covers of the book. A cool animated version of the book is featured on the Ezra Jack Keats' website: http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/fun-ga.... Recommended for ages 4-8, 3 stars.
December 6, 2014
This is a non-word picture book with a beautiful illustration. Illustrations are imperative and reinforcing to text and mood of story; may often add a different dimension and detail than text alone. I think the colors used are fantastic and really draw in the reader. People always say that don’t judge thing just but it cover. But I did pick this book by its amazing planting cover. This story is about the little girl looks at the cactus and sees more than its outer shell. She sees beauty in it, especially because the cactus is an ugly color and is short and fat. It isn't pretty like the other ones but still a child is able to see the inner beauty or the hidden beauty within. The way Child and plant are identifiable and the heroine with admirable character traits that show growth and represent the theme. In a word, Story gives enjoyment to the child and the inner child and is engaging yet includes a persuasive intent and Illustrations are free of stereotypes and easy to relate to
March 15, 2010
Clementina's Cactus is Ezra Jack Keats only wordless picture books. It's the tale of Clementina living with her father in what looks like New Mexico. She finds a cactus which she claims as her own but she's forced inside by an unexpected rain shower. The rain brings a small miracle to Clementina and her cactus.
Ezra Keats does beautiful illustrations. His children are always so full of personality. Here his watercolors bring to life the New Mexico desert. They are rich in color and light and absolutely charming to look at.
I brought home the book from the library for Harriet. She's about the same age as Clementina and has been enjoying growing flowers at her preschool. Harriet though is now "too big" for picture only books. She looked at it once politely and was done with it. In other words, I liked it a lot more than she did.
Ezra Keats does beautiful illustrations. His children are always so full of personality. Here his watercolors bring to life the New Mexico desert. They are rich in color and light and absolutely charming to look at.
I brought home the book from the library for Harriet. She's about the same age as Clementina and has been enjoying growing flowers at her preschool. Harriet though is now "too big" for picture only books. She looked at it once politely and was done with it. In other words, I liked it a lot more than she did.
October 9, 2015
Keats departs from his traditional style for his one and only wordless picture book,Clementina's Cactus, the last of his books published during his life.
"A man lives with his young daughter in a humble cabin in the desert. Lanky and bearded, he appears to have chosen such an isolated life. Like all Keats parents, he provides a loving home for his child. She is still a toddler, fascinated by everything she sees: a stubby cactus, a lightning storm, a beautiful rainbow. As little as we know about the family in this wordless book, the emotional impact of a child’s first experience of the natural world is communicated loud and clear."
http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/
Age Range: 3 - 8 years
Grade Level: Preschool - 3
"A man lives with his young daughter in a humble cabin in the desert. Lanky and bearded, he appears to have chosen such an isolated life. Like all Keats parents, he provides a loving home for his child. She is still a toddler, fascinated by everything she sees: a stubby cactus, a lightning storm, a beautiful rainbow. As little as we know about the family in this wordless book, the emotional impact of a child’s first experience of the natural world is communicated loud and clear."
http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/
Age Range: 3 - 8 years
Grade Level: Preschool - 3
Read
July 12, 2011This book has no words. It is literally a picture book consisting of 32 pages, 16 complete pictures. Clementina and an adult male, I‘ll assume is her father, take a walk through the desert. They come upon a small cactus. Clementina would like to continue studying the cactus but is pulled away by her father; he expects rain. Keats depicts thunder as bright blue and violet explosions in the sky. A few days after the rain Clementina is surprised to find flowers blooming on the cactus. This book would be great for a lesson on cacti and the desert.
August 4, 2016
Clementina discovers a cactus on a walk with her dad. Like any toddler, she is very curious about it. Soon it begins to rain and they return to their desert shack. Dad reads her a story. The next day Clementina races outside to see her cactus. It has sprouted bright orange flowers. Both Dad and Clementina celebrate the beautiful sight. This book is a great story about appreciating everyday beauty. The pictures are a little dated for today's audience, but with a little explanation from adults, children will understand things better.
November 27, 2008
This is a great wordless picture book. Ezra Jack Keats encourages the reader to use the pictures to describe the story. This book would be a great read aloud for elementary students because they can demonstrate a picture walk to tell the story. The illustrations are beautiful! The water colors help to entrall the reader.
September 2, 2015
In one of the last books he composed before his death, Keats presents a magical tale of a little girl and her father in the dessert. While I appreciate some of the illustrations in this wordless picture book, the characters seem out of place and like they belong in another story. _Clementina's Cactus_ has a nice storyline and is a book with the potential to be "read" in any language.
February 24, 2008
Fun little wordless picturebook with little Clementina enchanted by a small cactus growing in the desert.
September 29, 2010
Every so often I discover that there's a Keats book I didn't know about! Discovered this one today!
March 21, 2013
Wow, what beautiful watercolor illustrations! Love the storyline too, and what the father and little girl found at the end, so unexpected!
Read
September 25, 2014Artwork was decent but... didn't feel particularly outstanding
January 23, 2021
Beautiful watercolor illustrations and lovely wordless story. A favorite.
September 20, 2016
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
May 13, 2017
Gorgeous pictures in this wordless storybook. Wish there were words though as the pictures mostly made me worried about the fate of this toddler.
February 7, 2019
It was a really cute book and had a unique illustration style! However, I did not find it as interesting as other books I've read.
February 9, 2020
This could be a great book to use to teach about using pictures to tell what is happening in the book. The storyline may not be super engaging however
March 18, 2019
Genre: Picture Books - Wordless Picture Book
Awards: None
Audience: 3rd Grade and older - although anyone could enjoy this book and get something different out of it
A. I knew this was a wordless book because it has no words and relies completely on the illustrations to tell the story.
B. This book is illustrated completely out of watercolor and is incredibly beautiful! It uses incredibly bright and vivid colors to highlight Clementina's wonder and curiosity at the cactus she has found. After the thunderstorm that happens, Clementina goes back to the cactus to find that it has sprouted beautiful flowers, and the illustrator again uses bright pinks and oranges to showcase the delight of Clementina.
C. I would use this book as a one-on-one story time, especially with ELL students, as they do not need to know English to read a wordless picture book. This can also be used as a "read-aloud" to tie into teaching the concept of interpreting a story, and how everyone will interpret a story in a different way. Using this as whole group, students could then go back to their desks and write their own words to the story, and we could then share them.
D. Why did Clementina have to leave her cactus? A thunderstorm came and her dad made her go inside.
Awards: None
Audience: 3rd Grade and older - although anyone could enjoy this book and get something different out of it
A. I knew this was a wordless book because it has no words and relies completely on the illustrations to tell the story.
B. This book is illustrated completely out of watercolor and is incredibly beautiful! It uses incredibly bright and vivid colors to highlight Clementina's wonder and curiosity at the cactus she has found. After the thunderstorm that happens, Clementina goes back to the cactus to find that it has sprouted beautiful flowers, and the illustrator again uses bright pinks and oranges to showcase the delight of Clementina.
C. I would use this book as a one-on-one story time, especially with ELL students, as they do not need to know English to read a wordless picture book. This can also be used as a "read-aloud" to tie into teaching the concept of interpreting a story, and how everyone will interpret a story in a different way. Using this as whole group, students could then go back to their desks and write their own words to the story, and we could then share them.
D. Why did Clementina have to leave her cactus? A thunderstorm came and her dad made her go inside.
July 3, 2018
Clementina's Cactus is a children's picture book illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats, which tells a story about a girl named Clementina and her observations about a cactus.
The text is non-existent and is told mainly with illustrations. Keats has written children books with minimal text before, but this is the first book told exclusively by illustrations. The illustrations are wonderfully depicted and told the story without text exceptionally well. The illustrations are reminiscent of watercolor paintings.
The premise of the book is rather straightforward. While walking in the desert with her father, Clementina encounters a lone cactus, all dry, shriveled and prickly. Clementina is fascinated by the little prickly plant, but the threat of a thunderstorm forces her to head home with her father. In the morning, Clementina rushes to the prickly plant that had intrigued her and was surprised to see it blossomed, which greatly put a smile on Clementina's face.
All in all, Clementina's Cactus is a wonderful children's book about seeing the beauty in ordinary thing and how they could blossom in unexpected ways.
The text is non-existent and is told mainly with illustrations. Keats has written children books with minimal text before, but this is the first book told exclusively by illustrations. The illustrations are wonderfully depicted and told the story without text exceptionally well. The illustrations are reminiscent of watercolor paintings.
The premise of the book is rather straightforward. While walking in the desert with her father, Clementina encounters a lone cactus, all dry, shriveled and prickly. Clementina is fascinated by the little prickly plant, but the threat of a thunderstorm forces her to head home with her father. In the morning, Clementina rushes to the prickly plant that had intrigued her and was surprised to see it blossomed, which greatly put a smile on Clementina's face.
All in all, Clementina's Cactus is a wonderful children's book about seeing the beauty in ordinary thing and how they could blossom in unexpected ways.
July 15, 2021
“Clementina’s Cactus” presents a wordless story through beautiful watercolor illustrations. A young girl named Clementina becomes enamored by a shriveled cactus in the desert. Her father “saves” her from touching it by physically removing her. The characters go home to escape a desert storm that impacts the desert all night. Then when the storm ends, Clementina races to the cactus to see its beautiful blooming flowers.
I really liked Clementina’s features throughout this story. Her appearance and outfit had different colors and texture from the desert landscape. These differences highlighted her role as the central character throughout the story. I also liked how she always appears to be looking for something. It makes the reader wonder what the world looks like through her eyes.
As a teacher, I think I could use this book to teach emergent readers in grades kindergarten through second. The story does not have any words to “distract” the reader from the illustrations. The book also requires the reader to re-read the story to learn more about Clementina’s experience. In the end, the story produces images that provide commentary to “fill in” the words that are missing through discussion and analysis.
I really liked Clementina’s features throughout this story. Her appearance and outfit had different colors and texture from the desert landscape. These differences highlighted her role as the central character throughout the story. I also liked how she always appears to be looking for something. It makes the reader wonder what the world looks like through her eyes.
As a teacher, I think I could use this book to teach emergent readers in grades kindergarten through second. The story does not have any words to “distract” the reader from the illustrations. The book also requires the reader to re-read the story to learn more about Clementina’s experience. In the end, the story produces images that provide commentary to “fill in” the words that are missing through discussion and analysis.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 2, 2022
Wordless picture book.
No verso page or cover so no ISBN.
Keats departs from his usual collage illustrations and uses paint instead. The paintings are based on his trip to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee where he was researching in order to illustrate "Jubilant for Sure" by Elizabeth Hubbard Lansing.
No verso page or cover so no ISBN.
Keats departs from his usual collage illustrations and uses paint instead. The paintings are based on his trip to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee where he was researching in order to illustrate "Jubilant for Sure" by Elizabeth Hubbard Lansing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 3, 2021
Wordless, beautiful depiction of childlike curiosity and wonder.
Note: Clementina has a kachina doll as a toy, which would not be surprising for a white child living in the desert at the time of the writing, but which does not necessarily make it appropriate.
Note: Clementina has a kachina doll as a toy, which would not be surprising for a white child living in the desert at the time of the writing, but which does not necessarily make it appropriate.
February 13, 2023
Little Clementine lives near a desert. She is watching a dead-looking cactus. A rain storm starts up and she and her father return to their home. After the storm the cactus blooms. The watercolors give life to the wordless story. The illustrations are beautiful.
March 19, 2022
Wordless picture book. Meh.
January 8, 2023
Gorgeous!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews