I enjoyed rereading Beatrix Potter's The Tailor of Glouchester. In this delightful Christmas tale, readers meet a tailor, a cat named Simpkin, and some lovely mice. It begins, "In the time of swords and periwigs and full-skirted coats with flowered lappets--when gentlemen wore ruffles, and gold-laced waistcoats of paduasoy and taffeta--there lived a tailor in Gloucester." It is several days before Christmas. He's working hard to finish a coat and waistcoat for the Mayor of Glouchester. The Mayor is getting married on Christmas day. The tailor has just enough money to finish the coat. Not a penny to spare. He sends his cat, Simpkin, with his money to buy what he needs: a little for himself (food: bread, sausage, milk) a little for his work (one twist of cherry-coloured silk). It is only after the fact that he questions whether he should have sent the cat or gone himself. The cat returns, but, in a mood. The cat is upset for he's discovered that the tailor freed the mice he had captured and hid under the teacups. The cat hides the twist. The man is upset, of course, and sick. He takes to his bed unable to work. The oh-so-thankful mice go to his shop and finish his work for him. But since they are one twist short, they are unable to finish completely. Still, they do what they can, and they do a wonderful job. The cat who spies them at work, I believe, has a change of heart and gives the twist to the old man on Christmas morning. He has just enough time to finish. The Mayor is very, very pleased. And the tailor's luck changes for the better, and his business is much improved. This one is a lovely, delightful read from start to finish.
The Tailor of Gloucester tells the story of a tailor who must make a coat for the mayor’s wedding on Christmas Day. With barely a penny to his name he works with marvellous silks to create the finest coat for the occasion, all the while being watched by mice that live between the walls. As usual in Potter’s wonderful style, there are clever animals that are highly personified while still looking realistic. With the tailor being the key character there is still a lot of character given to Simpkin and the mice. Though interestingly the mice speak, but the cat does not. A curiosity I never really noticed before now. This does not mean that Simpkin does not get proper characterisation; he is a little selfish, a little bit sweet, and even a little bit filled with revenge, something that manages to add a lot of drama to this tiny tale.In a way there are many similarities between this story and Hans Christian Andersen’s The Elves and the Shoemaker, but I prefer this story. What makes this better is the tailor, he is such a great character, you care for him, and fear for him, and worry relentlessly about him and want him to be ok. You also chide Simpkin and love Simpkin and adore the scurrying mice that run from house to house. Also, I discovered something else wonderful whilst writing this review, this story is based on real events, though the mice were humans, but the sentiment remains!
What do You think about The Tailor Of Gloucester (1992)?
I wish they still had these types of industrious mice nowadays. Mice who will hear your frantic plea for help to complete a deadline at work...and then they'll come running to complete your powerpoint presentation or spreadsheet. Maybe because they're from Gloucester?Allen Atkinson's lovely illustrations make the Beatrix Potter classic even better. The tailor and his helpful mice made such an impression on me when I was small that I actually visited Gloucester. I never found the little rodents, but I did find one of those wonderful alleys full of shops. Certainly, the little ones were busy at work in one of those stores."And then I boughtA pipkin and a popkin,A slipkin and a slopkin,All for one farthing"Book Season = Year Round
—GoldGato
My spouse came home from a week in New Hampshire "worn to a raveling". Now, from whence comes that phrase? Well, Google says it's from The Tailor of Gloucester, so naturally, we had to hunt through our mouldering collection of Beatrix Potter books to read it. And so we have. Basically it's the tale of an old guy with spectacles and crooked fingers—kinda like me—who must prepare a waistcoat for the Mayor's Christmas Day wedding. He gets all the cloth cut and set out, but he has "no more twist", something needed for button holes. Then, because he is worn to a raveling, he gets sick. So what happens? Well read it yourself. It's a rather short, but GoodRead, after all, it has a cat and many sweet little mice in it.
—Larry Piper
I think that the Tailor of Gloucester is easily the hardest Beatrix Potter book for children to read. Gone are the simple, short sentences from Peter Rabbit and in their place are long and complex sentences like “For behind the wooden wainscots of all the old houses in Gloucester, there are little mouse staircases and secret trap-doors; and the mice run from house to house through those long narrow passages; they can run all over the town without going into the streets.”The tailor in question is very poor and only has his cat, Simpkin, for company. He has lots of work to do in preparation of the Mayor’s wedding but has no more twist to work with. The mice that live in his shop take pity on him and decide to help him make the clothes when he is out.The book is a very enjoyable read for those that will be able to understand it; I think this is definitely a year 5 or 6 book. The story is also fairly long, which I found quite pleasant in comparison to the 6-7 page stories we usually get from Beatrix Potter. The book is a lovely story and I enjoyed it very much.
—Jim Leech
