Nikolai Gogol's The Nose - Hardcover

Gogol, Nikolai Vasilevich; Cowan, Catherine

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0688104649 ISBN 13: 9780688104641

Publisher: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1994

Synopsis

After disappearing from the Deputy Inspector's face, his nose shows up around town before returning to its proper place.

About this title

From School Library Journal:

Grade 1-4-A barber breaks open a loaf of bread and finds a nose baked into it. It's not just any nose, either. It belongs to the Deputy Inspector of Reindeer. When the Deputy Inspector awakens to find his nose missing, he searches everywhere until he finds it masquerading as a General and Glorious Governor of Games. When he requests that it resume its proper place, it refuses and hurries away. The man is in despair until a policeman returns the nose. It will not stick to his face at first, but after a few days it is properly restored. Cowan has made a brave attempt at paring Gogol's short story into a form accessible to children, but she is not entirely successful. While her writing captures the cadence of Russian literature, the transitions are abrupt and often confusing. There is a sense of something missing. Furthermore, Gogol's story is satire, which may be entirely lost on the young children. Hawkes's acrylic paintings are slightly skewed in perspective, as if seen through a glass, and reflect an off-beat humor. The artist has a good eye for detail: the Deputy Inspector's wallpaper is patterned with reindeer and most of the pages containing text are bordered with a frame decorated with appropriate motifs. The vivid illustrations carry the story where the text falters. A well-intentioned attempt that falls a little short of its goal.
Donna L. Scanlon, Lancaster County Library, PA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews:

Tucking into his morning loaf, Ivan the barber discovers the nose of the Deputy Inspector of Reindeer. Not wanting trouble, Ivan lets the offending item slip from his fingers and into the river while crossing a bridge on the way to his shop. Elsewhere, the Deputy Inspector of Reindeer awakes to a noseless mug. On his way to the police, the Deputy Inspector happens to notice his nose riding by in an open carriage, all done out in finery, clearly putting on airs. He confronts the nose, but the nose denies any connection. Later that night, a policeman retrieves the Deputy Inspector's nose, which, despite some hesitation, returns to its former lodging. It is too much to expect the punch of the original, but a bit more of the story's satirical edge could have been captured by Cowan. What emerges is a whimsical little number, humorous and entertaining, with all the subversive pungency gone. Hawkes's acrylics are nice and bright, often giving a fish-eyed loopiness to the scenes, and deftly summon the Russian townscape. Any book that inspires children to read Gogol (as this one does), and that doesn't butcher the original in the process (as this one doesn't), is well worth the asking price. (Picture book. 5+) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0688104649
• ISBN 13: 9780688104641
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 31
• Illustrator: Hawkes Kevin