Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
While I was born long after its initial publication, Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina, it was a staple of my childhood. Seeing the images of the caps (atop or not) the peddler's head sparks a warm feeling of comfortable nostalgia.
Slobodkina tells the story of a mustachioed cap salesman as he travels to sell his wares. He does not have a cart or bags, instead he just wears all of his caps stacked atop each other on his head. As he grows sleepy, he decides to nap in a nearby tree. However, he failed to notice the curious monkeys who end up stealing all of his caps.
When the peddler wakes up and sees all of the monkeys have stolen his caps, he tries several ways of convincing the monkeys to give him back his hats, but none works. Just when he gives up, so do the monkeys.
While perhaps just a silly story, there is something about the imagery of the stack of caps that is so charming it has stayed with me into adulthood. Whenever someone mentions this delightful story, I can't help but smile.
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