Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Ahlberg and Amstutz (previously paired for <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">The Shopping Expedition) overlook few opportunities for humor in this tall tale (even the copyright includes jokes), which gains extra punch from the narrator's repeated insistence that the story is a true one. Devolving in an antique English setting, the action begins as a beribboned and bonneted baby falls from a window; the narrator's best friend catches her in his hat and receives a reward from her parents. Witty, detailed gouaches dotted with dialogue balloons lend a theatricality to the picaresque tale, as the baby catcher uses his reward money to travel to London, where he falls off London Bridge and lands in a ship, the beginning of a successful naval career. As if these preposterous coincidences are not enough, Amstutz further emphasizes the accidental nature of good fortune by providing plenty of visual subplots. Author and artist bring the story back to its beginnings for a satisfying, full-bodied conclusion. Ages 2–5. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Nov.)

Starred Review ALA Booklist (Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 CDT 2008)

Starred Review It's usually hyperbole to say the text and pictures in a book go together perfectly, but that's the word that comes to mind in this delightful offering. Set in colonial times, the book's narrator, a redheaded boy with glasses, begins the story with this amazing declaration: My Best Friend caught a Baby In his Hat. And sure enough, a curly blonde baby falls from a window into a young fellow's blue hat. The baby's mother gives the fellow half a crown, and so begins a wild and woolly journey, as the rescuer travels and has adventures through passing years. The cumulative tale sees him falling off a bridge and landing on a ship. He is first a cabin boy, then a mate. He fights with pirates in the South Seas and becomes a ship captain with a Stout Ship of his own. Home at last, the captain walks down the street where he caught the baby. Now a beautiful blonde woman peeks from the window. First comes love, then comes marriage, then the surprise for those who've not guessed: the bride is the now-grown baby. The narrator's earnest tale is in counterpoint to Amstutz's fun and fabulously detailed spreads, which capture all the sweep and excitement of a sailor's life, capped by sweet romance (and more voyages for the couple) at the end. Made for many readings.

School Library Journal (Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 CDT 2008)

K-Gr 2 The fortuitous catch of a baby falling from a window into a young boy's hat triggers a romp through London and beyond. The boy and his best friend spend his half-crown reward on a railway ride to the city. Once in London, he falls off a bridge in the fog, and, after a series of seafaring adventures, becomes a ship captain and eventually returns to the exact spot where he caught the baby years earlier. He sees a girl in that same window and things come full circle. The plot is slight, but the gouache illustrations, with numerous charming details, will captivate readers. The palette is largely soft blues and greens, which somehow makes the battles with pirates and exploding cannons on French warships seem almost benevolent. There is a historical quibble. Although the dress of the characters and the presence of a steam railway would place the story in 19th-century England during the reign of either King William the IV or Queen Victoria, the boy is said to have "served Good King William's army 'gainst the French." The War of the Grand Alliance with the French took place between 1688 and 1697 during the reign of King William III. No battles were fought with the French during the reign of William IV. This inaccuracy aside, children will enjoy poring over the panoramic pages, which makes the book better suited for independent or one-on-one sharing than for group presentation. Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ

Horn Book (Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)

With a winsome lilt, Ahlberg describes a boy who "caught a Baby / In his Hat" as she was falling from a window. After years of adventures at sea, he comes home to London to find that same baby--now a pretty face, and soon to be his bride. The story is handsomely visualized and intriguingly extended by Amstutz's sweeping gouache illustrations.

Kirkus Reviews

Wouldn't it be remarkable if someone caught—in his hat, no less—a baby who had fallen out of a second-story window and then he ended up marrying that same baby many years later? In this whimsical, supposedly true story set in early 19th-century England, the young baby-catcher gets half a crown for his trouble, rides a train to London, falls into the river, lands on an ocean-bound ship, fights off pirates, "Served Good King William's Navy 'gainst the French," becomes a captain, then returns home with "Treasure in his Trunk." The historical setting is reflected in the antique-looking typeface and generous use of capitalization. Upon his heroic return to town, the captain glances up at a beautiful maiden who smiles down at him from the very same window she'd fallen from so many years ago, and they live happily ever after with a tumbling tot of their own. The clean, engaging design, Amstutz's vivacious gouache illustrations and peanut-gallery cartoon bubbles ("Ahoy!" "Aye-aye, sir!") perfectly complement this simple, satisfying story narrated in short spurts by the baby-catcher's best friend. Hurrah! (Picture book. 4-8)