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Louie #1
Louie
Susie and Roberto are putting on a puppet show and all of their friends have come to see it, including she Louie. As the show begins, Louie becomes fascinated by the smiling puppet Gussie and shouts "Hello!" in front of a silent audience. After the show, Louie goes home and dreams about Gussie. When he wakes up, he discovers that his friends have left a gift for him. This classic Ezra Jack Keats story of love and generosity is as meaningful today as when it was first published more than twenty years ago.
40 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1975
161 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 55 reviews
November 24, 2019
This is the Ezra neighborhood. His colors shine here. I don’t think Peter is in this one, but it feels like the neighborhood gang.
Kids are putting on a puppet show for the neighborhood and Louie is taken by one of the puppets. He begins to dream of it eating ice cream. We don’t know why he likes it so much. I do begin to wonder if he is on the spectrum at all. Maybe? This was back in the 70s before that idea.
The nephew thinks Louie is a little strange becoming obsessed with the puppet. Dreaming of feeding it ice cream. He didn’t get it. He is one to talk. He becomes obsessed over many things and it takes over his world. He just doesn’t obsess over puppets, well, not yet. He found this a little boring and he gave this 3 stars. He did like the puppet show and the thought of entertaining his peers.
Kids are putting on a puppet show for the neighborhood and Louie is taken by one of the puppets. He begins to dream of it eating ice cream. We don’t know why he likes it so much. I do begin to wonder if he is on the spectrum at all. Maybe? This was back in the 70s before that idea.
The nephew thinks Louie is a little strange becoming obsessed with the puppet. Dreaming of feeding it ice cream. He didn’t get it. He is one to talk. He becomes obsessed over many things and it takes over his world. He just doesn’t obsess over puppets, well, not yet. He found this a little boring and he gave this 3 stars. He did like the puppet show and the thought of entertaining his peers.
April 1, 2017
The Louie books are weird.
February 27, 2013
I picked up this freebie book at the deGrummond Collection's (at the University of Southern Mississippi) special exhibit on Ezra Jack Keats, which I saw about 3 years ago, but never got around to reading it. I picked it up to read to my son the other day, but I must say it is not one of my favorites of his work. Susie and Roberto are putting on a puppet show with a mouse puppet and baby puppet named Gussie. Louie, a younger child in the audience, just falls in love with Gussie and can't resist talking to her during the performance. Before this show, Louie is a very quiet child who hardly ever speaks. After the show, the Susie and Roberto decide to give Gussie to Louie, since he was so attached to it. While I didn't like the story so much, the painted illustrations were lovely, especially the dream sequence. Recommended for ages 3-7, 3 stars.
September 5, 2017
Of all the books I've read so far by Ezra Jack Keats, this is my favourite.
Louie is a very shy little boy who doesn't speak to the other children. When Roberto and Susie put on a puppet show they invite all the other neighbourhood kids, and Louie comes and sits alone. As soon as the puppet show starts, Louie's attention is drawn to Gussie, one of the puppets, and he speaks to it! He is so captivated that the puppeteers tell him, through Gussie, to please sit down until the end of the show.
Louie was sad when he went home, and he had a strange dream that the other kids were making fun of him. When he woke from his dream his mother called to him, telling him someone left a note for him under the door. What happens next is delightful!
Louie is a very shy little boy who doesn't speak to the other children. When Roberto and Susie put on a puppet show they invite all the other neighbourhood kids, and Louie comes and sits alone. As soon as the puppet show starts, Louie's attention is drawn to Gussie, one of the puppets, and he speaks to it! He is so captivated that the puppeteers tell him, through Gussie, to please sit down until the end of the show.
Louie was sad when he went home, and he had a strange dream that the other kids were making fun of him. When he woke from his dream his mother called to him, telling him someone left a note for him under the door. What happens next is delightful!
August 5, 2016
It's a quiet book, but one that I would love to discuss with children. Louie is a quiet boy who does not say much, so it's quite surprising when he immediately becomes taken with a puppet named Gussie at Susie and Roberto's puppet show. The other children laugh at his peculiar outburst. Ezra Jack Keats does a wonderful job of helping the reader empathize with Louie without having to spell everything out for you or hit you over the head with a moral. It's a simple, yet thoughtful story. Excellent for critical exploration.
May 22, 2019
Something felt missing in this book -- some context, I think. Something to tell us what's happening. But Louie is almost definitely autistic, and with that in mind, I loved this book. The autistic identification with puppets is sharply realized, and I can appreciate a book that's about that one specific thing even if I'd rather it was more clear. (Also, I'm reading through all the picture books I can find that feature puppets, and I'm thrilled to find a boy of color as a lead, especially if he's autistic.)
July 23, 2015
Splendid and touching. Louie, who I perceive as a child with special needs, is made to feel included and valued. It's very subtle, so you're not sure if there's something different about him, but I do think Keats was reflecting a child who is a pariah or just an outsider by nature. The graffiti and trash made of scrap paper is fantastically creative and meaningful. It adds a layer of ironic beauty to the neglected city streets of NY.
February 1, 2018
I thought this was a clever story about friendship and thinking of others. I enjoyed it!
Ages: 4 - 7
**Like my reviews? I also have hundreds of detailed reports that I offer too. These reports give a complete break-down of everything in the book, so you'll know just how clean it is or isn't. I also have Clean Guides (downloadable PDFs) which enable you to clean up your book before reading it! Visit my website: The Book Radar.
Ages: 4 - 7
**Like my reviews? I also have hundreds of detailed reports that I offer too. These reports give a complete break-down of everything in the book, so you'll know just how clean it is or isn't. I also have Clean Guides (downloadable PDFs) which enable you to clean up your book before reading it! Visit my website: The Book Radar.
December 3, 2015
"He didn't answer. He was still sad from his dream. His mother went on, 'Someone slipped a note for you under the door.'" I agree with many of the reviewers of this book that while it's not one of Keats best, it is a quiet, sweet meditation on kindness and community - centering around a little boy who is a bit different but finds a special connection to a puppet named Gussie.
November 27, 2008
This story tells about a young boy with an extremely vivid imagination. Once again Ezra Jack Keats does great illustrations. This story could be used as a read aloud that encourages young boys to imagine and enjoy reading. Students can make great personal connections to this story.
January 23, 2009
A friend reminded me of this book. From doing puppet shows at libraries and schools, I have seen for myself that all kinds of children, especially those slow to talk, love puppets! Keats seems to have experienced this too.
January 26, 2012
This had to be Louie first time at a puppet show. I like the way the children handled his outburst.I love the reaction of Children when they see puppet shows and bubbles blown. This book can starts some arts and crafts by making puppets and even doing a show.
April 25, 2012
This is another great story basket book. Your can also do some great creative writing activities where students describe their own puppets. You can make your own puppets in class as well. Many options.
April 19, 2014
This is the first of the 'Louie Series', a spinoff from the popular 'Peter Series' set in the same colorful New York neighborhood. Louie is quiet, shy and lonely and in need of a friend. Will he find one at a puppet show?
April 21, 2016
A touching story about a child who doesn't usually speak, and what might connect with them and get them to open up. Not as poignant as Keats' Peter and Archie books, but still a nice slice of childhood life, with a racially diverse cast.
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April 20, 2013I would use this book as a lesson on puppets and have an activity creating a puppet show using their imagination and creativity.
November 29, 2014
The pictures are truly wonderfully Ezra Jack Keats, but the story is just not that great.
May 15, 2018
Keats vibrant illustrations and text bring Louie to life as he discovers the puppet Gussie--and speaks the first words his neighbors have heard.
August 5, 2018
Love the art, and a decent story as well.
August 28, 2018
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September 15, 2018
Beautiful illustrations and a lovely story.
September 22, 2018
Questioning
Inferencing
Inferencing
December 20, 2018
A bit too disjointed. There are a number of elements that do seem realistic for little kids, but it requires a bit more to have it work as a book.
August 8, 2019
The kids are putting on a puppet show for the neighborhood. Louie is captivated by Gussie, one of the puppets. He goes home and even dreams about the puppet.
February 11, 2025
There are four books in the Louie series. A couple of years ago I read Book 4 (Regards To The Man In The Moon) out of order. For a linear thinker like me, that is unusual. This year I checked out Louie's Search and realized I was still going backwards. So, at last, here I am reading the first book in the series.
As a child one of my favorite books was The Snowy Day and the Ezra Jack Keats style has such a nostalgic feel for me. Even after reading several other books by Keats, 'The Snowy Day' remains my top pick.
This series is charming and communicates so much more than the individual components might indicate. At the heart of this first book is a simple neighborhood puppet show starring Gussie, a smiling round-faced puppet in a dress and a mouse. Louie is in the audience and stands up to greet Gussie with an enthusiastic "Hello!" After walking home alone he takes a nap and dreams of having Gussie for a friend. When he wakes up there is a green string to follow outside his door. At the end of the string is a wonderful surprise. Love the symmetry and the colorful urban-style illustrations.
Sadly, I will have to skip Book 2 as our library does not have a copy. You can check out my review of Louie's Search later today.
As a child one of my favorite books was The Snowy Day and the Ezra Jack Keats style has such a nostalgic feel for me. Even after reading several other books by Keats, 'The Snowy Day' remains my top pick.
This series is charming and communicates so much more than the individual components might indicate. At the heart of this first book is a simple neighborhood puppet show starring Gussie, a smiling round-faced puppet in a dress and a mouse. Louie is in the audience and stands up to greet Gussie with an enthusiastic "Hello!" After walking home alone he takes a nap and dreams of having Gussie for a friend. When he wakes up there is a green string to follow outside his door. At the end of the string is a wonderful surprise. Love the symmetry and the colorful urban-style illustrations.
Sadly, I will have to skip Book 2 as our library does not have a copy. You can check out my review of Louie's Search later today.
June 29, 2018
Louie is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats, which tells a story about a shy boy named Louie who goes to a puppet show and is enamored and excited about a puppet named Gussie. It is the first book of four books in the Louie series.
The text is rather simple and straightforward. It is an endearing story about a shy boy named Louie who became so enamored by a puppet that he starts talking to it and miss it when it's not around. I'm not sure if Keats' had this in mind when he created Louie, but to me, it felt like Louie is somewhere on the autistic spectrum – if so, then it's another milestone for Keats for being one of the first, if not the first to include a child on the spectrum as a main character. The illustrations are wonderful and done in typical Keats' style of collage and watercolors.
The premise of the book is rather straightforward. Louie is a quiet and shy boy who hardly speaks and goes to a community puppet show put on by Susie and Roberto. When Louie saw Susie's puppet Gussie came on stage. Louie was so enamored and instantly love the puppet so much that he had to speak to it. Afterwards, when it was time to leave, Louie gave Gussie a hug goodbye unwilling to let it go. That night he had a dream that turned into a nightmare. It was about Louie and Gussie having fun until the puppet disappeared. In the end, Gussie was given to Louie, which made him very happy.
All in all, Louie is a wonderful children's book about how sharing something so important to someone else could make their day.
The text is rather simple and straightforward. It is an endearing story about a shy boy named Louie who became so enamored by a puppet that he starts talking to it and miss it when it's not around. I'm not sure if Keats' had this in mind when he created Louie, but to me, it felt like Louie is somewhere on the autistic spectrum – if so, then it's another milestone for Keats for being one of the first, if not the first to include a child on the spectrum as a main character. The illustrations are wonderful and done in typical Keats' style of collage and watercolors.
The premise of the book is rather straightforward. Louie is a quiet and shy boy who hardly speaks and goes to a community puppet show put on by Susie and Roberto. When Louie saw Susie's puppet Gussie came on stage. Louie was so enamored and instantly love the puppet so much that he had to speak to it. Afterwards, when it was time to leave, Louie gave Gussie a hug goodbye unwilling to let it go. That night he had a dream that turned into a nightmare. It was about Louie and Gussie having fun until the puppet disappeared. In the end, Gussie was given to Louie, which made him very happy.
All in all, Louie is a wonderful children's book about how sharing something so important to someone else could make their day.
August 24, 2020
I read this book recently trying to get a list going for my baby registry. It is one of the lesser known (to me) of the Ezra Jack Keats books, and after reading it I am not sure why. As other reviewers have noted I found myself seeing the character Louie as being on the spectrum. Since the book is from a time before that was really discussed, it doesn't go into depth about what makes Louie different. (Which I really enjoyed.) It simply acknowledges that the children are aware of his difference but Louie is still part of the group. They include him in the puppet show with the gang, but instead of just having fun the kids go on a mini emotional journey that leads to them gifting the puppet that Louie connects with to him. I thought it was a very sweet and compassionate book that made me choke up at the end.
I think that it is a great book to open up the discussion of Autism for children while being an example of kindness towards others. We don't have to understand everything about one another, and it might take some self-reflection, but we can make a small yet meaningful difference in each other's lives. I sincerely hope this book is re-discovered and discussed more.
I think that it is a great book to open up the discussion of Autism for children while being an example of kindness towards others. We don't have to understand everything about one another, and it might take some self-reflection, but we can make a small yet meaningful difference in each other's lives. I sincerely hope this book is re-discovered and discussed more.
February 27, 2019
This would be a great book to use to introduce different disabilities and ways to think outside of the box with compassion and how to interact with people who are different from you. There is also opportunity to talk about fears and nightmares and that we don't know what other people are thinking or feeling.
I didn't love the jump from louie being home, to having a nightmare, to waking up and leaving. It felt disjointed, but to me the opportunity to talk about love being triumphant over differences and how to love people in different ways trumped those issues.
I didn't love the jump from louie being home, to having a nightmare, to waking up and leaving. It felt disjointed, but to me the opportunity to talk about love being triumphant over differences and how to love people in different ways trumped those issues.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 7, 2019
Story of two Puerto Rican (?) children who were putting on a puppet show. Louie, a boy who never says anything, is there, and instantly relates with one of the puppets, which he is eventually given by the children.
Different kind of a story that doesn't make a great deal of sense in some parts. Pictures are vibrantly alive with color without a great deal of specific features.
Different kind of a story that doesn't make a great deal of sense in some parts. Pictures are vibrantly alive with color without a great deal of specific features.
March 4, 2024
Louie is a story about a boy named louie who is known for not talking. A few friends decide to perform a puppet show and when he sees one specific puppet he suddenly speaks. This is a good story to read to children who may be on the quiet side and who maybe have a hard time with participating in class.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews