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Charlie Needs a Cloak: Story and Pictures by Tomie Depaola.
A shepherd shears his sheep, cards and spins the wool, weaves and dyes the cloth, and sews a beautiful new red cloak.
32 pages, Library Binding
First published January 1, 1973
8 people are currently reading
583 people want to read
About the author
Tomie dePaola
437 books893 followersTomie dePaola (pronounced Tommy da-POW-la) was best known for his books for children.
He had a five-decade writing and illustrating career during which he published more than 270 books, including 26 Fairmount Avenue, Strega Nona, and Meet the Barkers.
Tomie dePaola and his work have been recognized with the Caldecott Honor Award, the Newbery Honor Award, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, and the New Hampshire Governor's Arts Award of Living Treasure.
He had a five-decade writing and illustrating career during which he published more than 270 books, including 26 Fairmount Avenue, Strega Nona, and Meet the Barkers.
Tomie dePaola and his work have been recognized with the Caldecott Honor Award, the Newbery Honor Award, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, and the New Hampshire Governor's Arts Award of Living Treasure.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 120 reviews
September 21, 2023
Why I chose to read this book:
Since reading the biography The Worlds of Tomie dePaola: The Art and Stories of the Legendary Artist and Author by Barbara Elleman, I've been trying to add more of Tomie dePaola's books to my reading repertoire!
Praises:
1. a sweet little story about Charlie, a shepherd, who needs a new cloak since his old one is in tatters. He enlists the help of his flock, including a mischievous black-faced sheep, to provide the wool;
2. as Charlie goes through the process of making a new cloak, from shearing his sheep, carding and spinning the wool, to sewing the pieces together, this rascally sheep (along with a little mouse), try to thwart Charlie's endeavors in humorous ways;
3. the illustrations truly tell the "untold" story;
4. the title is cleverly embedded in the story; and,
5. a simple Glossary is included to define the terms used to construct a woolen garment.
Overall Thoughts:
An instructional story with humorous illustrations bound to tickle young readers'/listeners' funny bones! I highly recommend that readers give plenty of time for their audience to peruse the illustrations in order to appreciate the details within.
This simple sequential story of making an object from start to finish would be an excellent example for young writers attempting instructional nonfiction writing.
Suitable for ages 4 to 8!
Since reading the biography The Worlds of Tomie dePaola: The Art and Stories of the Legendary Artist and Author by Barbara Elleman, I've been trying to add more of Tomie dePaola's books to my reading repertoire!
Praises:
1. a sweet little story about Charlie, a shepherd, who needs a new cloak since his old one is in tatters. He enlists the help of his flock, including a mischievous black-faced sheep, to provide the wool;
2. as Charlie goes through the process of making a new cloak, from shearing his sheep, carding and spinning the wool, to sewing the pieces together, this rascally sheep (along with a little mouse), try to thwart Charlie's endeavors in humorous ways;
3. the illustrations truly tell the "untold" story;
4. the title is cleverly embedded in the story; and,
5. a simple Glossary is included to define the terms used to construct a woolen garment.
Overall Thoughts:
An instructional story with humorous illustrations bound to tickle young readers'/listeners' funny bones! I highly recommend that readers give plenty of time for their audience to peruse the illustrations in order to appreciate the details within.
This simple sequential story of making an object from start to finish would be an excellent example for young writers attempting instructional nonfiction writing.
Suitable for ages 4 to 8!
July 16, 2021
In the 1970s, '80s, and '90s, no one could do informational picture books like Tomie dePaola. Cultural studies, folktales, historical pieces, religious tradition, even basic science were all in his repertoire, and several classics arose among his many works. Charlie Needs a Cloak is a simple walkthrough of the process by which sheep's wool is made into clothing, the minor miracle of turning an animal's natural winter coat into a cloak to keep the shepherd warm against the snowy season. During the story, we're also entertained by the antics of the sheep, and a mouse bustling in and out of the shepherd's house. It's a charming marriage of visuals and narrative.
Charlie takes good care of his small flock of sheep, but he needs a new cloak. His old one hangs in tatters, its bright red faded to dull pink. So Charlie begins the process of making a new cloak. He shears his sheep in spring and gathers the wool. He washes it, cards the wool to straighten out the kinks, and painstakingly spins it into high-quality yarn. In summer he picks pokeweed berries to dye the yarn vibrant red, and on autumn evenings he weaves it into cloth for his garment. Charlie patiently cuts, pins, and sews the cloth into the gorgeous red cloak he'll wear come winter. It's all part of the life of a shepherd, whose daily care for his flock does not go unrewarded.
Tomie dePaola's illustrations are warm and affectionate, as usual. The story has value as nonfiction, showing the effort required to turn a natural resource into functional, attractive clothing for a shepherd without modern manufacturing at his disposal. Products we take for granted aren't always as easy to make as we assume. The wordless sub-story with the sheep and the mouse is amusing for readers who aren't interested in how clothes are made, so younger and older kids can both enjoy the book. Charlie Needs a Cloak isn't emotionally affecting like some of Tomie dePaola's works, but it's whimsical, cozy, informative, and I like it. I wouldn't mind reading it a few times a year.
Charlie takes good care of his small flock of sheep, but he needs a new cloak. His old one hangs in tatters, its bright red faded to dull pink. So Charlie begins the process of making a new cloak. He shears his sheep in spring and gathers the wool. He washes it, cards the wool to straighten out the kinks, and painstakingly spins it into high-quality yarn. In summer he picks pokeweed berries to dye the yarn vibrant red, and on autumn evenings he weaves it into cloth for his garment. Charlie patiently cuts, pins, and sews the cloth into the gorgeous red cloak he'll wear come winter. It's all part of the life of a shepherd, whose daily care for his flock does not go unrewarded.
Tomie dePaola's illustrations are warm and affectionate, as usual. The story has value as nonfiction, showing the effort required to turn a natural resource into functional, attractive clothing for a shepherd without modern manufacturing at his disposal. Products we take for granted aren't always as easy to make as we assume. The wordless sub-story with the sheep and the mouse is amusing for readers who aren't interested in how clothes are made, so younger and older kids can both enjoy the book. Charlie Needs a Cloak isn't emotionally affecting like some of Tomie dePaola's works, but it's whimsical, cozy, informative, and I like it. I wouldn't mind reading it a few times a year.
February 25, 2017
I use this to teach my students how fiber becomes clothes. They also like looking for the mouse on each page.
September 10, 2023
As a long time weaver, this is my favorite go-to book to read to kids about spinning and weaving.
October 2, 2023
Love this book. Love Tomie dePaola.
This book was cool because the main character was a guy but the guy did all the work to get wool from the sheep into a new cloak. As an adult, I even learned a new word/term.
He shears the sheep, washes the wool, cards the wool, spins the wool into yarn, then picks berries to dye the yarn, dries the yarn, weaves the yarn into cloth on a loom, cuts the cloth, pins the pieces, and sews them together.
This book is great. Fighting gender roles. Normalizing guys doing this. Love love love.
I also love the sheep being silly in the background on the pages.
Highly recommend.
Weird thing- the first page is before the title page and the title page is part of the story.
This book was cool because the main character was a guy but the guy did all the work to get wool from the sheep into a new cloak. As an adult, I even learned a new word/term.
He shears the sheep, washes the wool, cards the wool, spins the wool into yarn, then picks berries to dye the yarn, dries the yarn, weaves the yarn into cloth on a loom, cuts the cloth, pins the pieces, and sews them together.
This book is great. Fighting gender roles. Normalizing guys doing this. Love love love.
I also love the sheep being silly in the background on the pages.
Highly recommend.
Weird thing- the first page is before the title page and the title page is part of the story.
May 12, 2018
Great little book to read to your children if you want to give them a sense of how clothing is made/traditional artistry, spinning, and weaving.
July 27, 2021
The process for making Charlie’s cloak had my daughter captivated. Then, we were both laughing when we saw the surprise on the last page!
February 3, 2023
one of our favorites
May 1, 2018
A simple story about Charlie, a pre-Industrial farmer whose naughty sheep eat his cloak. Charlie must shear his sheep; scour and card the wool, spin, dye and weave the yarn into fabric; cut and sew the fabric into cloth. If you look closely, the whimsical illustrations show mischievous sheep and a sneaky mouse doing crazy things in the background.
A co-worker and I took this book to a first grade classroom. She read the story once all the way through and again a second time more slowly, asking the kids to notice certain things and asking questions about the steps to make the cloak and why while I showed some props. The kids learned about pre-Industrial clothing and how it was made. We did a craft activity with the kids to enhance the learning experience. I think they had fun though struggled with the weaving activity. Everyone discovered first hand just how hard it was for Charlie to make that cloak!
A co-worker and I took this book to a first grade classroom. She read the story once all the way through and again a second time more slowly, asking the kids to notice certain things and asking questions about the steps to make the cloak and why while I showed some props. The kids learned about pre-Industrial clothing and how it was made. We did a craft activity with the kids to enhance the learning experience. I think they had fun though struggled with the weaving activity. Everyone discovered first hand just how hard it was for Charlie to make that cloak!
April 8, 2020
We love this book!
November 26, 2022
This is my son's favorite dePaola so far and after years of reading Strega Nona to my daughter I'm very pleased with this classic newly added to our library.
October 14, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed the shepherd Charlie and his quest for a cloak. I have a soft spot for sheep and wool so I cherished this survey of sheep-to-fabric. And the way dePaola draws sheep faces and expressions is unparalleled!
August 28, 2010
“Charlie Needs a Cloak” is one of the Tomie DePaola’s earlier children’s books and is the first book that I have read that contains information about how to make a cloak the old fashioned way. “Charlie Needs a Cloak” might be a bit slow for some children who are not accustomed to learning about how to make clothing, but it is a great book for children to read over and over again.
Tomie DePaola has done a great job with this book as he goes into great detail about how to make a cloak the old fashioned way. Tomie DePaola’s illustrations are beautiful, especially of the image of the sheep with their cute eyes. I love how Tomie DePaola shows the audience how to make a cloak through the images of Charlie cutting wool from sheep to woven the wool into cloth.
Parents should know that this book might be a bit too boring for younger children to handle. Children might be bored with the lack of action in this book as it mainly shows Charlie making a cloak and has no conflict to bring about the action in this book.
“Charlie Needs a Cloak” is a great book about how to make a cloak the old fashioned way and is extremely interesting for children who would want to learn how to make a cloak for themselves. Children will easily love the innocent nature this book portrays cloak making and will cherished this book for many years. I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since there is nothing inappropriate in this book for children.
For other books by Tomie DePaola, check out the Strega Nona series.
Tomie DePaola has done a great job with this book as he goes into great detail about how to make a cloak the old fashioned way. Tomie DePaola’s illustrations are beautiful, especially of the image of the sheep with their cute eyes. I love how Tomie DePaola shows the audience how to make a cloak through the images of Charlie cutting wool from sheep to woven the wool into cloth.
Parents should know that this book might be a bit too boring for younger children to handle. Children might be bored with the lack of action in this book as it mainly shows Charlie making a cloak and has no conflict to bring about the action in this book.
“Charlie Needs a Cloak” is a great book about how to make a cloak the old fashioned way and is extremely interesting for children who would want to learn how to make a cloak for themselves. Children will easily love the innocent nature this book portrays cloak making and will cherished this book for many years. I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since there is nothing inappropriate in this book for children.
For other books by Tomie DePaola, check out the Strega Nona series.
April 30, 2008
Charlie the shepherd is in need of a new cloak. This easy-to-read book shows the process of making clothing. Charlie must shear the sheep, spin and dye the wool, weave it into fabric and finally cut and sew the cloak together. As the story takes moves through the process of making the cloak, notice also the different seasons of the year. Children will enjoy the little lamb who does not want to give up his wool and the mouse that is found on each page doing various tasks. The simple illustrations will appeal to young children.
March 31, 2015
My son wasn't very interested in this book about the process of Charlie making himself a new cloak. It gets 4 stars from me, though, because I love anything that tries to inform the masses that things don't just magically appear in the store. In this case, we see Charlie shear the sheep, wash, card, dye, and weave the wool, then sew the cloak.
July 6, 2015
I love the progression showing the steps Charlie takes to get a new cloak. Much different then going to the store and plopping down a credit card.
February 21, 2020
Tomie de Paola is one of Brooklyn's nicest guy authors for kids, which is not something you say about anyone from Brooklyn! His classic book is more to do with learning different words than telling a real story, but it's still a fun picture book to read since the illustrations are excellent, as a small boy tending sheep is reminded by townspeople to get a cloak in case the wind blows cold. So he makes one, out of the wool from his sheepies! Boom. End of story. But I can't dumb it down all the way, cos...the sheepies are so cutely drawn! IE: THEY'RE SO CUUUUUUUTE!!!! ...ahem, pardon me, but cuddly Critters still touch my aging heart! Baa!
Three stars
This book made with WOOL LITE!!! (Get it?)
Three stars
This book made with WOOL LITE!!! (Get it?)
April 1, 2021
This sweet story is about a shepherd who makes a new cloak for himself. The book goes through the process of shearing the sheep for the material to sewing the cloak together. The main colours in the book are hues of red, and at the end of the book terms children may not know are explained (shear, weave, etc.). One of the clever things about this book is that it begins on the first page...before the title page!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 16, 2021
I love books that bring back memories. When my children were little we volunteered at This is the Place Heritage Park. The children called the pioneer park. I remember when we sat in a little cabin with two older ladies as they showed the children how fabric was made from wool. The children helped card the wool, we watched a lady spin the wool into yarn on an old fashion spinner and then they were able to help weave on the loom. I really enjoyed taking them to "The Pioneer Park" each week.
November 15, 2023
Charlie is a resourceful guy and he has a couple of cute helpers. When a cloak is needed to keep him warm, we get to watch him step by step from shearing the sheep to sewing the cloak. Red is definitely his color! Along the way watch for his two assistants -- a sheep and a little, tiny mouse. This is a book that early readers will find manageable and enjoy reading to or with an adult. Love, love, love this one!
May 19, 2021
We are slowly discovering Tomi dePaola’s expensive collection of books. This is an older one and goes through the steps of creating a new cloak, from shearing the sheep to seeing the pieces of weaves fabric. It’ll be fun to return to it in a year or two when Elliot can understand the process a bit more, but he still seemed to enjoy it
* library book. Read at 20 months
* library book. Read at 20 months
January 12, 2024
It's fine. I do like the illustrator because the pictures are simple but fun. It's great that it teaches the process of how clothes are made by hand. This one just isn't a favorite of my 15-month-old. Maybe when he's older he'll like it a little bit more. As the reader I found it kind of boring but that could just be my personal opinion.
February 13, 2019
Charlie gets a cloak, the reader learns about how fuzzy sheep have something to do with wool, and the little kid on your lap gets asked 'Oh my, what's that silly sheep doing now?' and 'Do you see the mousey on this page?' a lot.
A winner.
A winner.
November 7, 2019
This a quick and simple book about a sheep herder whose cloak needs to be replaced. So he goes through the steps from shearing the sheep to sewing a new cloak.
I loved the simplicity and education tone of the book.
I loved the simplicity and education tone of the book.
Read
March 8, 2020Charlie's cloak is old and raggedy. So Charlie shears the sheep, cards the wool, weaves the cloth, cuts the cloth, sews it together. And Charlie has a new cloak!
Mentor text ideas:
Beginning, middle, and end
Sequencing
Transition words
Mentor text ideas:
Beginning, middle, and end
Sequencing
Transition words
September 21, 2022
An easier, and funnier, companion to A New Coat for Anna. This one is just Charlie and the sheep, though... no community (which is a pity).
October 4, 2023
A cute simple story on Charlie the shepherd whose cloak is worn out. The story follows the steps involved in Charlie crafting his new cloak from shearing the sheep to wearing his brand new cloak. My 2nd grader and I enjoyed this read!
July 30, 2024
While at first glance this book is overly simple, dePaoloa's charming illustrations add humor and charm to the story. The shepherd from the story also might make another appearance in a Strega Nona book!
September 29, 2025
my daughter loves reading this book and I love that it shows the process of a long forgotten but important skill: how to make your own clothing from wool. Includes cute pictures and definitions of key words in the back.
May 10, 2017
Very cute!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 120 reviews