What do you think?
Rate this book
The Rocket Book
Long before Richard Scarry or Dr. Seuss, an American artist delighted a generation of children and their parents with hilarious, topsy-turvy illustrations and slightly subversive tales told in rhyme. This was illustrator/author Peter Newell. Working over eighty years ago, Newell remains as profoundly enjoyableùand incredibly popularùas ever. Tuttle is proud to be reissuing his three classic works, sure to delight the young and old alike.
In The Rocket Book, you'll Algernon Bracket and Orlando Pease. Find out how a rocket launched from the basement floor of an apartment building is sure to interrupt a personÆs day.
In The Rocket Book, you'll Algernon Bracket and Orlando Pease. Find out how a rocket launched from the basement floor of an apartment building is sure to interrupt a personÆs day.
52 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1912
5 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
Peter Newell
148 books11 followersPeter Sheaf Hersey Newell (March 5, 1862 – January 15, 1924) was an American artist and writer. He created picture books and illustrated new editions of many children's books. -wiki
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
September 19, 2017
Oh, this was adorable. Fun to read, with cute illustrations (loved the expressions on all the faces!) and clever rhymes.
The story is simplicity itself: a naughty boy lights a rocket in the basement of an apartment building and we follow it to the top floor, witnessing the chaos it creates on the way.
The author manages to have the people on every floor doing something different at the time the rocket passes through. From trying to light a cigarette to playing a phonograph to working on a taxidermy walrus head, there was a lot going on each floor!
My favorite (no surprise here) was the Nineteenth Floor, where young Burt was riding a rocking horse that suddenly turned into a bucking bronco. My sympathies for Burt, because my rocking horse used to do the same thing even without a rocket!
While Burt was on his hobby-horse
And riding it like mad,
The rocket on its fiery course
Upset the startled lad.
The frightened pony plunged a lot,
Like Fury playing tag.
"Whoa, Spot!" said Burt. "Who would have thought
You such a fiery nag!"
Here is the link to The Rocket Book at Project Gutenberg. It is worth a few minutes of your time! http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17104/...
The story is simplicity itself: a naughty boy lights a rocket in the basement of an apartment building and we follow it to the top floor, witnessing the chaos it creates on the way.
The author manages to have the people on every floor doing something different at the time the rocket passes through. From trying to light a cigarette to playing a phonograph to working on a taxidermy walrus head, there was a lot going on each floor!
My favorite (no surprise here) was the Nineteenth Floor, where young Burt was riding a rocking horse that suddenly turned into a bucking bronco. My sympathies for Burt, because my rocking horse used to do the same thing even without a rocket!
While Burt was on his hobby-horse
And riding it like mad,
The rocket on its fiery course
Upset the startled lad.
The frightened pony plunged a lot,
Like Fury playing tag.
"Whoa, Spot!" said Burt. "Who would have thought
You such a fiery nag!"
Here is the link to The Rocket Book at Project Gutenberg. It is worth a few minutes of your time! http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17104/...
April 15, 2019
This rhyming picture book actually has better rhythm than a lot of the more modern ones I've read. It's too bad it's a wee bit dated (although, for being over a hundred years old, it's not as bad as it could've been).
A brat lights a rocket in the basement of an apartment building, and then the reader is treated to a short poem about each of the suites that the rocket crashes through. It's actually kind of amusing... although it's amazing nobody was killed; that was one powerful rocket to go through all those floors!
The illustrations are quite nice, too. It's fun to see what's going on in all those apartments as the rocket makes its quick visit.
The ending is a little abrupt, but suitably comical, given what came before. I don't know if I'd read this to an impressionable young child (there's a little too much fainting and swooning among the women going on for my taste), but it might be fun for older children to see what picture books were like in the early part of the 20th century.
Quotable moment:
A brat lights a rocket in the basement of an apartment building, and then the reader is treated to a short poem about each of the suites that the rocket crashes through. It's actually kind of amusing... although it's amazing nobody was killed; that was one powerful rocket to go through all those floors!
The illustrations are quite nice, too. It's fun to see what's going on in all those apartments as the rocket makes its quick visit.
The ending is a little abrupt, but suitably comical, given what came before. I don't know if I'd read this to an impressionable young child (there's a little too much fainting and swooning among the women going on for my taste), but it might be fun for older children to see what picture books were like in the early part of the 20th century.
Quotable moment:
While Carrie Cook sat with a book
The phonograph played sweetly.
Then came the rocket and it smashed
That instrument completely.
Fair Carrie promptly turned her head,
Attracted by the roar.
"Dear me, I never heard," she said,
"That record played before!"
September 24, 2025
this is what i should've been reading when i was 7
utterly brilliant
utterly brilliant
July 11, 2015
Oh my, what a fun book to read The rhymes were charming. We see the consequences of on bad act and how they are perceived. The janitor's son finds a rocket in the basement and lights it. The rocket takes off and goes through each of the floors above it. On each floor we have a different incident taking place that is destroyed by the rocket coming through. The people in the apartments seem to be oblivious to what truly happened until it reaches the top floor. I loved the way each floor had a two stanza rhyming poem to explain what happened. I would definitely recommend this book to everyone. This is one of those charming books to be enjoyed by young and old alike. The pictures definitely have an old time feel. If I were to meet the author I would have to say, "More Please."
I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
December 31, 2013
This little book published in 1912 is amazingly entertaining. It follows the path of an errant rocket from the basement (where a small boy accidentally lights it) through 21 flats.
Each flat it travels through is a glimpse of life in the early twentieth century. Women swoon, men are inventing things, children are playing with trains. A robbery is happening, a man is making ice cream, a woman plays the piano all told in rhyming prose.
This was a time when children were expected to know "grown-up" words like consumption ans taxidermist and swooning.
If I had small children in my home, I would read them this book. History, entertainment and humor rolled into a fun story.
Each flat it travels through is a glimpse of life in the early twentieth century. Women swoon, men are inventing things, children are playing with trains. A robbery is happening, a man is making ice cream, a woman plays the piano all told in rhyming prose.
This was a time when children were expected to know "grown-up" words like consumption ans taxidermist and swooning.
If I had small children in my home, I would read them this book. History, entertainment and humor rolled into a fun story.
May 1, 2019
I just found out about the Library of Congress' new digital collection of children's books and this was the one I happened to click on to check it out. I love that they scanned all of the pages, so it includes some of the library markings. The illustrations are fun and the rhyme scheme done well. Definitely parts of it are dated or have not aged particularly well, but it was interesting to be able to read it and I look forward to exploring more of the titles in this collection! (If you're interested, here's the link to the collection: https://www.loc.gov/collections/child...)
November 29, 2018
This books is very clever--even moreso when you consider children's literature and the era in general when it was first published (1912). Well worth a read if you have the interest and can get your hands on it.
May 17, 2016
Now this was an absolute delight to read! All too often, parents are forced to endure their children's books, but this was actually a pleasure to read.
August 6, 2016
Que livro mais maravilhoso e divertido! Impossível não se apaixonar pelos desenhos ou pelas rimas ❤
November 4, 2025
Peter Newell’s The Rocket Book is a delightful gem of nonsense poetry that bursts with charm and cleverness. Its rhyming verses are witty and imaginative, capturing the chaos unleashed by a mischievous rocket as it zooms through an apartment building—floor by floor, disrupting lives in the most hilarious ways.
The illustrations are beautifully rendered, full of expressive detail and vintage flair that perfectly complement the absurdity of the story. Newell’s playful narrative and visual humor make this book a joy to read aloud, whether you're a child giggling at the rocket’s antics or an adult appreciating the poetic craft and satirical edge.
This is nonsense poetry at its best—timeless, inventive, and irresistibly fun. A true classic that deserves a spot on every bookshelf.
The illustrations are beautifully rendered, full of expressive detail and vintage flair that perfectly complement the absurdity of the story. Newell’s playful narrative and visual humor make this book a joy to read aloud, whether you're a child giggling at the rocket’s antics or an adult appreciating the poetic craft and satirical edge.
This is nonsense poetry at its best—timeless, inventive, and irresistibly fun. A true classic that deserves a spot on every bookshelf.
August 11, 2023
The book is available for free reading at Library of Congress read.gov site.
The book is amazing illustration of what happens when a naughty boy deliberately sets off a rocket in a basement floor that goes up to the twentieth floor, going all the way through various flats of different people busy in their daily routinely activities, unsuspecting of what is just about to pass them by that quickly. A good read that shows how different people spend their day at the same time while a silly little mishap occurs.
The book is amazing illustration of what happens when a naughty boy deliberately sets off a rocket in a basement floor that goes up to the twentieth floor, going all the way through various flats of different people busy in their daily routinely activities, unsuspecting of what is just about to pass them by that quickly. A good read that shows how different people spend their day at the same time while a silly little mishap occurs.
November 15, 2022
Having read The Hole Book and The Slant Book, I knew what to expect with this one. However, that doesn’t negate the surprise of reading about a sudden explosion set off by a mischievous child.
Mr. Newell’s books don’t tell stories so much as gallivant gaily throughout human life. Here, the action remains firmly within one tenement building as the titular toy blasts through the architecture, startling humans and animals alike.
The book is a microcosm of a particular slice of history, one in which explosive toys were left lying carelessly about without regard as to the safety of young children. It also reveals other aspects to cement them to the early 20th century: fashionable women wore large hats, people had ketchup on the breakfast table, old men wore wigs indoors, children blew bubbles at the table, women entertained their family members by playing piano and people cranked ice cream by hand.
People expecting the vivid hues of modern children’s books will be disappointed. The color palette ranges from gray, sepia, dingy yellow to blue. But the action never flags. As the rocket meets its final end, the reader can grin as it comes full circle. One child sets it off and another child finishes its journey. It’s a whimsical, funny tale, told as only Peter Newell could.
Mr. Newell’s books don’t tell stories so much as gallivant gaily throughout human life. Here, the action remains firmly within one tenement building as the titular toy blasts through the architecture, startling humans and animals alike.
The book is a microcosm of a particular slice of history, one in which explosive toys were left lying carelessly about without regard as to the safety of young children. It also reveals other aspects to cement them to the early 20th century: fashionable women wore large hats, people had ketchup on the breakfast table, old men wore wigs indoors, children blew bubbles at the table, women entertained their family members by playing piano and people cranked ice cream by hand.
People expecting the vivid hues of modern children’s books will be disappointed. The color palette ranges from gray, sepia, dingy yellow to blue. But the action never flags. As the rocket meets its final end, the reader can grin as it comes full circle. One child sets it off and another child finishes its journey. It’s a whimsical, funny tale, told as only Peter Newell could.
December 27, 2025
This book was absolutely charming... I just read it with my 7-year-old and he loved it. While it was old-fashioned, it was completely relatable and funny. The illustrations were done in a nice kid-friendly style, and very humorous. They added nicely to the story. I'm glad someone suggested this book to me.
December 7, 2021
Funny!
May 10, 2022
James loved the humor of the janitor’s mischievous kid setting off a rocket in the basement that shot through 21 floors and destroyed things all the way up.
September 12, 2025
Great rhymes, totally chaotic scenes, I would suggest you read this one and the “Hole Book” together as they have the same setup.
March 26, 2014
This book was originally copyrighted by Harper and Brothers Publishing in 1912. Peter Newell was born in 1862. He illustrated for Mark Twain and the Alice in Wonderland books. Once relegated to the shelves of the Library of Congress, the book has been reissued in print and digitized versions. It is available online at amazon.com.
As many of my readers know, I am a history lover; I write about history. I live in a house that is more than one hundred years old, and I grew up in an apartment not unlike the “flat” in this story. The illustrations in this book are priceless! Newell uses black and white and muted colors that make the drawings pop. Facial expressions convey the humor and intent of the story. Each part of the story contains eight lines of catchy, clever verse. Even though today’s children may be unfamiliar with many of the items pictured: a Remington typewriter, a wooden hobby horse, a taxidermist with his walrus head, they will get the story from looking at the rhyme and the accompanying illustration.
What is the story? The janitor’s kid named Fritz, who is described as a “bad kid,” finds a rocket in the basement of a twenty-one story apartment building. He lights it up. The reader is taken on a humorous journey following the rocket through an apartment on each of those floors. The mayhem which ensues includes knocking off grandpa’s wig, ripping through a new hat through a hat box, destroying a breakfast table while exploding catchup on the family, and scaring off a burglar in one of the apartments. Where and when does it stop? Take a look at this book to learn a lot about early twentieth century people, clothing, and lifestyle. This book will appeal to adults interested in vintage objects and children age eight and up who enjoy humor, a good verse, and a dose of history.
As many of my readers know, I am a history lover; I write about history. I live in a house that is more than one hundred years old, and I grew up in an apartment not unlike the “flat” in this story. The illustrations in this book are priceless! Newell uses black and white and muted colors that make the drawings pop. Facial expressions convey the humor and intent of the story. Each part of the story contains eight lines of catchy, clever verse. Even though today’s children may be unfamiliar with many of the items pictured: a Remington typewriter, a wooden hobby horse, a taxidermist with his walrus head, they will get the story from looking at the rhyme and the accompanying illustration.
What is the story? The janitor’s kid named Fritz, who is described as a “bad kid,” finds a rocket in the basement of a twenty-one story apartment building. He lights it up. The reader is taken on a humorous journey following the rocket through an apartment on each of those floors. The mayhem which ensues includes knocking off grandpa’s wig, ripping through a new hat through a hat box, destroying a breakfast table while exploding catchup on the family, and scaring off a burglar in one of the apartments. Where and when does it stop? Take a look at this book to learn a lot about early twentieth century people, clothing, and lifestyle. This book will appeal to adults interested in vintage objects and children age eight and up who enjoy humor, a good verse, and a dose of history.
July 1, 2011
The Rocket Book
Reading Level: Children’s
Genre: Fiction, Humor
This copyright for this book is 1912. On the ICDL website there is scanned note that indicates the book is part of the rare collection. The book is about a boy who lights a rocket in the basement of an apartment building. The story takes the rocket through flat by flat all the way to the 21st floor and describes what happens in each apartment. The book is written in rhymes and humorous with the people in the flat not ever really knowing that a rocket has just come through their home, but just that something somewhat out of the extraordinary happened when they were doing something ordinary.
Reading Level: Children’s
Genre: Fiction, Humor
This copyright for this book is 1912. On the ICDL website there is scanned note that indicates the book is part of the rare collection. The book is about a boy who lights a rocket in the basement of an apartment building. The story takes the rocket through flat by flat all the way to the 21st floor and describes what happens in each apartment. The book is written in rhymes and humorous with the people in the flat not ever really knowing that a rocket has just come through their home, but just that something somewhat out of the extraordinary happened when they were doing something ordinary.
December 2, 2012
This is a story about a young boy who lights a rocket in a basement of a 20 story apartment building. The story continues by showing the rocket going through each floor and describing what happens when the rocket hits each floor. The story is a bit humorous because the people in the story will say something like "oh be careful it might explode" and then there comes the rocket making the people stand in great surprise! The story has great pictures and each page has a hole in it where the rocket went through. The story also has great rhymes that will intrigue children and keep them reading!
March 31, 2014
The Rocket Book was published in 1912 and it is very noticeable that it is an older book based on the color and illustrations. I still think it was very well done though. The illustrations were very interesting and helped me stay entertained. Every character looked somewhat surprised in the illustrations, even the dog which I found humorous. The story shows the rocket going flat by flat all the way to the 21st floor and something different happens in each apartment. It was very entertaining and creative.
November 29, 2012
This is a funny story written in rhymes about a boy who sets off a rocket by accident. It talks about the rocket's journey through the twenty floors of the building until it finally freezes in the ice cream that is being made on the top floor. This book has a lot of big vocabulary so I would like to use it for older grades, maybe fourth grade.
June 30, 2011
A story of a rocket shooting up from the basement of a 20 story apartment. As it goes through each floor it tell in couples who lived on the floor and where the rocket went through. A cute book, might use it with an older group for a writing prompt/model.
May 21, 2013
Read it in iBook. The animation was minimal but my sixth graders enjoyed them. The read was good, but the number of flats was bit numerous. Rhymes were cute and taught my sixth grades about alternate spelling of words.
January 9, 2017
This is a good book. Not great. It's really fun to read out loud because of the rhymes, but then you mostly forget the plot after you read it. The illustrations are not really my favorite style either.
November 3, 2012
We read it online here:
http://www.read.gov/books/pageturner/...
http://www.read.gov/books/pageturner/...
December 14, 2010
brilliant and imaginative !
July 12, 2011
Found at http://www.read.gov/books/rocket.html
Clever and whismy look at what happens when a young boy fires off a rocket in a building's basement.
Clever and whismy look at what happens when a young boy fires off a rocket in a building's basement.
September 12, 2018
An engaging story? Not really. But definitely different, and a good discussion starter to use with kids. We thought up several additional scenes that could have been disrupted by the rocket.
September 13, 2016
A rare treasure of a book. Fully illustrated (original illustrations).
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews