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The life of a coat /*
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The LUILIC

story By Kadya Molodowsky

ILLUSTRATED BY Batia Kolton

TRENT BOOKS]
 Digitized by the Internet Archive
In 2022 with funding from
Kahle/Austin Foundation

https://archive.org/details/lifeofcoat0000molo
The tailor tailors— stitching, sewing,
As his family just keeps growing.

Many children,
God be praised,
And a little babe
to raise.
Our tale begins with a winter coat, A winter coat with narrow slit
Not with a mischievous white goat. For a child’s head to fit.

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 But oh, which child would it fit? Shmulik wore the coat with pride,
This winter coat with narrow slit. So he’d keep warm and snug outside.
Shmulik wore it one year, two —
The sturdy coat stayed
good as new.
 s

Another year — and yet, what’s more, Little Shmulik grew and grew.
The coat seemed nicer than before. The coat grew tight. His flesh poked through.
Back at home, much fuss and fretting...

Look how big .

young Shmulik’s LT? Little Shmulik,
| not so little,
Now the coat’s tight
‘round his middle.
Mama said (this didn’t faze he Lazer wore it one year, two —
Give it to Shmaryahu Lazer. The sturdy coat stayed good as new.
Another year — and yet, what’s more, Until he raised his hands up high,
The coat seemed nicer than before. And both the sleeves tore. Lazer, why?

aii
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Back at home, much fuss and fretting...
a —— Lazer raised his hands,
_ . oh my!
Look how big . Both the sleeves tore.
our Lazer’s oo . Why, oh why?
getting! . - >
 Bayla wore it one Year, two —
The sturdy coat stayed good as new.

Alas, this coat,

Let us pass
So finely tailored —
it on to Bayla.
 Another year — But one day, —
and yet, what’s more, Bayla bent down low... watch the lining go!

The coat seemed

nicer than before.

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11
Back at home, much fuss and fretting... And while awaiting,the Messiah,

Look how big our Bayla’s getting!

All she did was bend down low,
Enough to make the
lining go!
 Haya wore it one year, two — Another year — and yet, what’s more,
The sturdy Coat stayed good as new. The coat seemed nicer than before.
 Oh the panic, oh the woe, Crying hard, she couldn't stop it,
The girl is drenched from head to toe. Haya lost the coat’s two pockets.
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14
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Co How can it be?

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Haya! You should fo eit steerer

Se eS IeINia. — Pockets shouldn't just
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Yechiel Peretz, wild and loud, Peretz, Peretz, what a clown,
Donned the coat and Climbs a tree then falls right down.
wore it proud.
Pulls the tails of mice and ‘rats,
Plays his flute for dogs and cats.

Gets his father’s goat with pranks, Smiles through his mother’s spanks.

17
Whistles, howls, and hoots with joy — Through it all, But that same day, at two p.m.,
In brief, a rather happy boy. this rowdy child He ripped the coat right at the hem.
Wore the coat,
ran free and wild.
 ree

And then at five p.m., you see, Then at the closing of the day, Now the coat with
He tore a hole above the knee. The collar somehow fell away. holes was riddled,
In the bottom, top,
and middle.
 Then oh what panic, , Whercanerecal:

oh what fear! | What have we here?

All coats wear and fray — however,
This one was to last forever.

Yechiel Peretz, listen up,

Why’s this collar on
the pup?

20
Peretz, you are noStupid boy—
A coat’s a coat, and not a toy.
SO oh what panic, oh what fear —
The coat is gone! It’s disappeared! Peretz —
what are you, a goat?
Pray tell, what happened
to the coat?
21
Peretz answered: If you please,
| gave the And then there was
’ll account for neck to knees:
right side to a Cat. an act of theft —
It felt right to do A dog came by and
just that. took the left.

22
 As for the holes,
if you’re concerned,
’ll give you each one —
take your turn.
24
 The poet KADYA MOLODOWSKY (1894-1975) was born in Poland.
She was a rambunctious, vivacious child who enjoyed writing poems
and aspired to be a teacher. Later, she realized her dream and taught
at Jewish preschools in Warsaw and Odessa. The children she met,
many of whom hailed from poor families, inspired her to write lively,
humorous poetry. She wrote in Yiddish, the language spoken by
these children. The Life of aCoat was written in 1931 to entertain her
students, some of whom didn’t own a winter coat. Kadya Molodowsky
left Poland before World War II. She lived in Israel and the United
States, and continued writing in Yiddish all her life.

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Translator: Ilana Kurshan
Editors: Conrad Groth, Rutu Modan, Yirmi Pinkus
Designer: Jacob Covey
Supervising Editor: Gary Groth
Production: Paul Baresh
Associate Publisher: Eric Reynolds
Publisher: Gary Groth

This edition of The Life of aCoat is copyright © 2019 Fantagraphics

Books, Inc. All Illustrations copyright © 2019 Batia Kolton; all text
copyright © 2019 Kadya Molodowsky — Hakibbutz Hameuchad Ltd.
By arrangement with the Deborah Harris Agency. All rights reserved.
Permission to reproduce content must be obtained from the publisher.

Fantagraphics Books, Inc.

7563 Lake City Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115

ISBN: 978-1-68396-267-0
First Fantagraphics Books edition: September 2019
Printed in Malaysia
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978-1-68396-267-0 $12.99

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