One Warm Coat’s mission is to provide free coats to children and adults in need while promoting volunteerism and environmental sustainability. Thirty years ago, one woman with one coat sparked a movement that has led to over 43,000 coat drives across the United States, providing more than 7.3 million free, warm coats to children and adults while keeping more than 18 million pounds of textiles out of landfills. One Warm Coat believes in each person’s right to shelter from the elements and is committed to sharing warmth one coat at a time.
This is a fantastic initiative. In many parts of Australia many of us only don a coat if we are going to Tasmania, Melbourne, the snow or the mountains or are off overseas, as it is rarely very cold.
Are coats common in children's books?
• There are many beautiful editions of the bible story about Joseph and his coat of many colours. See:
Joseph's Coat of Many Colours by Katherine Sully
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice and Quentin Blake
Joseph by Anna Fienberg and Kim Gamble
The Coat of Many Colours by Pauline Baynes and Jenny Koralek
• A coat features in the fable about the wind and the sun. See
The Contest Between the Sun and the Wind by Heather Forest and Susan Gabor
The North Wind and the Sun by Brian Wildsmith
• A coat features in this Turkish folktale, The Hungry Coat by Demi. It features Nasrettin Hoca, a version of Nasreddin Hoca who was a philosopher, wise, witty man with a good sense of humour. His stories have been told almost everywhere in the world, spread among the tribes of Turkic World and into Persia, Arabia, Africa and along the Silk Road to the China and India cultures.
• Other fiction picture books which feature a coat.
Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Taback Simms
Blurb: When Joseph's coat got too old and shabby, he made it into a jacket. But what did he make it into after that? And after that?
The Goat's Coat by Tom Percival and Christine Pym
Blurb: When Alfonzo the goat discovers a host of creatures who need help, he doesn't hesitate. Using his precious, much-loved coat, he finds ways to solve their problems - fashioning a boat for frogs out of a cuff, for instance. But soon he's down to the last thread and it's started to snow... What will he do?
The Coat by Julie Hunt and Ron Brooks
Blurb: The Coat stood in a paddock at the end of a row of strawberries. It was buttoned up tight and stuffed full of straw and it was angry. 'What a waste of me!' it yelled. Then along came a man. 'I could do with a coat like that,' the man said.
The Pocket Dogs by Margaret Wild and Stephen Michael King
Blurb: Mr Pockets' two small dogs, Biff and Buff, love to ride in his big coat pockets. But one day a hole appears in the right pocket and it gets bigger...
The Jacket by Sue-Ellen Pashley and Thea Baker
Blurb: about a much loved colourful coat that is passed from Amelia to Lily, to Lilly’s dolls, the cat with her kittens and finally breathed new life in to once more as the worlds most fabulous teddy bear for Lilly’s younger brother.
A Coat of Cats by Jeri Kroll and Ann James
Blurb: When an old woman is moved to a "shiny new apartment," she is forced to leave her seven cats behind. But cats have long memories, as well as nine lives, and they miss her as much as she misses them. Late one night, the old woman braves freezing weather to check on her cats, and discovers that she means as much to them as they mean to her.
The Tiny Woman's Coat by Joy Cowley and Giselle Clarkson
Blurb:The tiny woman makes a coat of leaves with the help of her animal friends. The trees, geese, porcupine, horse and plants all share something so the tiny woman can snip, snip, snip and stitch, stitch, stitch a coat to keep herself warm.
A Coat of Many Colors by Dolly Parton and Brooke Boynton Hughes
Blurb: Using lyrics from her classic song "Coat of Many Colors," the book tells the story of a young girl in need of a warm winter coat. When her mother sews her a coat made of rags, the girl is mocked by classmates for being poor. But Parton's trademark positivity carries through to the end as the girl realizes that her coat was made with love "in every stitch."
The Coat by Severine Vidal and Louis Thomas
Blurb: Ah, the coat. So warm, so beautiful, so red. It's all Elise has really wanted, and she's been waiting forever. Lighthearted and poignant, this book offers a glimpse at the hardships confronting those who are experiencing homelessness and inspires us to treat them with compassion and respect.
The Bird Coat by Inger Marie Kjolstadmyr and Oyvind Torseter
Blurb: The tailor Pierre has a big dream: He wants to fly. To make this outlandish vision a reality, he decides to sew a garment that is up to the task: his very own, resplendent bird coat. This tale was inspired by the true story of Franz Reichelt, dubbed "the flying tailor," who in 1912 jumped from the Eiffel Tower in an attempt at flight.
Beware the Killer Coat by Susan Gates ( a short novel that is out of print but may be in a library) *
Blurb: Andrew hates his jumble-sale coat from the moment he first sets eyes on it. Big, red and shiny, with sharp, teeth-like zips and flaps that look like nasty green eyes, the coat clings to Andrew like an octopus. This is no ordinary coat, he is sure; it's a killer coat that wants to hurt him. The problem is that his mother won't take his worries seriously.
While making this list, I was surprised to see just how many of them are about recycled coats or the repurposing of coats, perfect for teaching about sustainability and over consumption.
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