Drummer Hoff

by Barbara Emberley

Genres: Picture Books

Hardcover

Published October 1, 1967

Reviews

[Angelique W · Rating 3 out of 5]

The vivid color and detailed textures of the illustrations, specifically the soldiers and drummer boy were my favorite parts of this 1967 picture book. In comparison to more contemporary picture books that I've read of late, this one fails in comparison, but I see why it won a Caldecott Medal Award in 1968. The book is written in simple and repetitive rhyming poetry detailing the soldiers filling the cannons with the balls and then exploding them as the drummer boy soldier drums with his sticks. The illustrations of these soldiers and drummer remind you of all the toy soldier Christmas decorations that have made a popular resurgence in retail stores during the holidays. My own mother has started to collect them as well.

[Cheryl Licata · Rating 3 out of 5]

This picture book is based on a folk song about soldiers in the military. Each of the soldiers brings a piece of equipment to add to the final creation. As the readers get to puzzle out what the object is, Drummer Hoff gets to fire the cannon the soldiers had put together. Working together is the theme of this story.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This funny story is brightly illustrated with a flourish, and told in rhyme. It is a collective story of preparing a cannon to fire off.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun rhyming book with psychedelic colors.