Birthdays | Lost in a Good Book

The Tailor of Gloucester by Beatrix Potter

28 Jul 2014 Leave a comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Birthdays Tags: beatrix potter, birthday, children, five stars

Today is the birthday of the delightfully wonderful author Beatrix Potter, author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddleduck, and my absolute favourite story The Tailor of Gloucester.

Beatrix Potter was born Helen Beatrix Potter in 1866 to a wealthy Unitarian family. Potter didn’t have a lot of friends outside her family and she spent a lot of time with her parents and brother. Her education was done by a private governess until she was eighteen but she was taught multiple broad subjects such as languages, science, history, and literature.

Potter wrote twenty three books, each celebrating mature and country life and brought to life lasting characters such as Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddleduck, Tom Kitten, and Mrs Tiggy-Winkle and other wonderful characters each with a wonderful story of their own.

Not only is Potter a wonderfully storyteller, but all of her stories are told with beautiful illustrations she did herself. Her mother and father were artistic and she and her brother Walter Bertrum would often draw the various small animals they kept as pets. As a child she was given private art lessons and loved painting the natural world. I remember learning too that Potter was also very interested in biology and anatomy, and liked to see how things worked, which aided in her realistic drawings of animals.

Potter did not start as an author, but rather as an artist. Her paintings and drawings were not only of animals and nature but also insects, fossils, archaeological artefacts, and fungi. These make her recognisable by the scientific community, especially her mycological illustrations and research into the reproduction of fungus spores. It was from this success that Peter Rabbit was written and illustrated, first published privately in 1901 and a year later as a small, three-colour illustrated book through Frederick Warner and Co.

Potter wanted her books to be printed small, as she took into account the small child’s hands that would be reading her work. This is why those great mini Potter books exist, but are a little but rarer these days which is a shame. There is so much more to learn about Beatrix Potter, she was a fascinating woman who came from an interesting family, and her life is one that showed off not just her talents but her love of the natural world. She was a sheep herder and farmer, buying up numerous farms to preserve the land, and leaving most of her property to the National Trust upon her death.

Potter continued to write and design merchandise for her publishers until poor eyesight contributed to her stopping. She died in 1943 aged 77 from pneumonia and heart disease but her stories have lived on. There have been multiple adaptations and merchandise that keep her characters alive and will continue to do so for many years to come.

Published: September 16th 1992
Publisher: Frederick Warne & Co.
Pages: 58
Format: Book
Genre: Children
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – 5 Stars

Beatrix Potter has a wonderful place in my heart. I not only adored the tiny little books I read as a kid, but I had The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends videos and I loved them to bits. I know everyone knows of The Tale of Peter Rabbit, but I am going to review one of my all time favourite Beatrix Potter stories, The Tailor of Gloucester.

The Tailor of Gloucester is the third book Potter wrote, and was published in 1903. It 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. The tailor frets over his work as he realises that he has no more twist of cherry-coloured silk. After sending his cat Simpkin out to retrieve some, who seems to return without it, the tailor goes home struck with a fever, unable to keep working.

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 the Grimm Brothers’ 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!

I’m not saying that as I thought about this gorgeous book I started to tear up but I totally did and I think it is one of the most wonderful stories of Potter’s, it was certainly her favourite, and it is one that should be remembered by people more often; away from Peter Rabbit and yes, as much as I adore Jemima Puddleduck even away from her sometimes.

The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends did a wonderful adaptation of this book, like all the episodes it is quite faithful, and creative, and allows Potter’s characters to come to life. If you would like to watch The Tailor of Gloucester episode and have your heart moved and broken and warmed, you can watch it here. You can also read the story here.

Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth

03 Jun 2014 Leave a comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Birthdays, General Tags: birthdays, five stars, historical fiction, kate forsyth

Today is the birthday of Australian author Kate Forsyth!

Kate Forsyth is an Australian author known for her children’s books, her heroic fantasy series, as well as her historical novels. With more than twenty books under her belt for both adults and children, there are stories to suit all ages. She has also won or been nominated for numerous awards, including winning the Aurealis Award five times. Before becoming a writer, Forsyth worked as a journalist before then moving on to freelance work to have more time to focus on her writing. Having written her first novel at the age of seven Forsyth has gone on to become an internationally bestselling author, and shows no sign of stopping anytime soon.

Forsyth’s love of fairytales is one of the reasons I really like her, her adult historical fictions Bitter Greens and The Wild Girl allow a backstage pass behind the fairytales we know and love today, including new insights into what the truth is behind these gripping stories. Bitter Greens about the origins of the tale of Rapunzel, and The Wild Girl about the woman and the love story behind many of the Grimm Brothers fairytales. Understanding how these timeless tales came about gives them so much more meaning and puts important and forgotten faces in front of stories where they belong.

One of the other things I love about Kate Forsyth is her ongoing and enduring passion for fairytales. It is a joy to hear her speak about fairytales and her passion, as well as the impact and influence they have had on her life, as is listening to her discuss her passion for books and reading in general. I implore you all to pick up one of her books, any of her books, and start reading them straight away, and I wish Kate a very happy birthday!

To learn more about Kate and her work just pick a link and start clicking!

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Published: 20th March 2012
Publisher: Vintage Australia
Pages: 576
Format: Book
Genre: Historical Fiction
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – 5 Stars

Charlotte-Rose de la Force has been banished from the court of Versailles by the Sun King, Louis XIV, after a series of scandalous love affairs. She is comforted by an old nun, Sœur Seraphina, who tells her the tale of a young girl who, a hundred years earlier, is sold by her parents for a handful of bitter greens…

Selena is the famous red-haired muse of the artist Tiziano, first painted by him in 1512 and still inspiring him at the time of his death, sixty-four years later. Called La Strega Bella, Selena is at the centre of Renaissance life in Venice, a world of beauty and danger, seduction and betrayal, love and superstition, retaining her youth and beauty by the blood of young red-haired girls.

After Margherita’s father steals a handful of parsley, wintercress and rapunzel from the walled garden of the courtesan Selena Leonelli, he is threatened with having both hands cut off unless he and his wife give away their little red-haired girl. And so, when she turns seven, Margherita is locked away in a tower, her hair woven together with the locks of all the girls before her, growing to womanhood under the shadow of La Strega Bella, and dreaming of being rescued…

Three women, three lives, three stories, braided together to create a compelling story of desire, obsession, black magic and the redemptive power of love.

Bitter Greens is the story of the fairytale Rapunzel, told against the backdrop of seventeenth century Europe and through the lives of many extraordinary women. The story focuses on three women in particular, Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force – a member of King Louis XIV’s court, Margherita – a girl stolen from her family and shut away, and a courtesan surrounded by magic – Selena Leonelli. Each of their stories is told through an intricately threaded narrative and through the eyes and lives of these women, a wonderful story is told about passion, history, and fairytale.

The way Forsyth connects each of these stories together is brilliant. Her storytelling ability is engaging, mystical, and pulls at all the right emotions. What she has done is create a compelling novel that is based on history, based on the life of Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force, based on a period of time with royalty and court, convents, and just to keep things interesting, the Black Death.

The story starts with Charlotte- Rose and we learn of her banishment from court and it is through her new life in the convent that the stories of the other women are brought to life through the tale told by Sister Seraphina. The altering nature of each woman’s story was particularly enjoyable because it allowed you to feel like you too were being told the story in multiple sessions by someone. An entire story cannot be told in one afternoon in the garden, and Forsyth does not try to pretend like it is possible.

As I read about the convent life Charlotte-Rose endures I remember liking it to a women’s prison, though I’m sure that is a slight exaggeration but the way Forsyth describes it, especially coming from the life Charlotte-Rose had in court, it seems like a horrible place to end up and made me wonder why anyone willingly chose it. But as we see it through Charlotte-Rose’s eyes we are only exposed to her view of things, and it is writing like this that is truly excellent. The story Forsyth writes is enthralling and is one that is packed with detail making you feel like you are there beside each character the entire time. This is not just for Charlotte-Rose’s story though, the details throughout this book are extraordinary and there are minute details and grand details that not only add to the story but make you admire the writing and writer even more so.

By telling us the three women’s stories – Charlotte-Rose, Margherita, and Selina Leonelli, you learn that everyone has a story. The women in this story do not necessarily start out as the people they become, nor do they remain the same people there were, there are, like for everyone, many influences in their lives and each of these unique women are certainly victims of their circumstance, but it is what they do with it that can change everything and makes this a gripping story.

As I say there are many points of view as well as jumps in time through this book, meaning every perspective and every story can be told. This does not result in any confusion however as each story is woven together beautifully, heartbreakingly, and magically all at once. They are all connected, flowing one after the other, twisting together with such ease that you never lose your place, nor forget what has come before. You do however get so engrossed with each story that Forsyth is telling you are suddenly brought back to reality when the scene chances again and you realise you are in a memory, or the past, or someone else’s mind.

Bitter Greens isn’t so much a story within a story, but at the same time it is. Sister Seraphina tells the tale of Margherita to Charlotte-Rose, but through these two stories we see many other stories emerge, histories and pasts, all connecting together in the epic tale filled with history, passion, and longing. It is truly spectacular and a joy to become lost in and the historical aspects only add to the wonder. The detail and the complexities certainly show the years of research behind it, even passing comments can be something wonderful as you recognise a small seemingly obscure part of history being referenced.

Along with everything else this book has to offer from, the way Forsyth brings the story to an end is superb. The details possibly forgotten by the reader are brought back and reconnected to the story and a full circle is made where you didn’t know one needed completing. After initially being a tad saddened by the ending I soon recovered and understood. It is also hard to argue with history about where a story ends up. What was also wonderful was that the Afterword provides you with a brief ongoing story about Charlotte-Rose’s life, and what became of her and how her story got to be told, there is also additional information in the Forward.

There is a lot of power in Bitter Greens, not just in the life and realities people had to deal with during this time, but also the power of the people, the women, and the stories of the past. Historical fiction, good historical fiction, can make you see the past in a new light, bring out the everyday and make it shine. That is what Forsyth has done with this book, made it not just Rapunzel’s story retold, but looked at where she came from and how she came to be with integrity and adventure.

This book not only makes you realise there are more fairytale writers away from Grimm, Perrault, and Anderson, but discovering how these stories were created is astonishing. The fact that there is so much truth threaded into this work of fiction is marvellous and it makes you wish that some of the magical elements were a little bit real. Though having said that there is actually more reality than magic, and what magic there is is more on the unconventional side than fairytale magic typically is, enough to steep it more in reality than pure fantasy.

I explained this book to my sister as one she must read. She argued she did not like historical novels but I told her this was too good a story to pass up. I believe my words were “But it has fairytales! And prostitutes! And the plague!”. Possibly not the best argument but it is certainly not an untrue one. Bitter Greens does have all of these things, but what Forsyth does with the fairytales, prostitutes, and the plague is something to be admired, she takes these components and captures them into this story and turns them into a novel that is must read for lovers of history and fairytales alike. This is so much more than a simple Rapunzel story, it is a story that will leave you amazed, educated, and delighted.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming

28 May 2014 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Birthdays, Classic, General, Junior Fiction Tags: birthday, birthday book bonanza, classic, four stars, ian fleming, junior fiction

Today marks the 106th birthday of author Ian Fleming, best known for his novels turned movies about 007 spy James Bond. However, writing novels is not how Fleming started out. Born in 1908, Fleming was the second of four bothers to parents Valentine and Eve. Valentine was a Member of Parliment for Henley in London and they lived in the wealthy district of Mayfair. Just before Fleming’s ninth birthday his father was killed in the First World War, and family friend and fellow officer, Winston Churchill wrote the obituary.

Fleming had a range of jobs, he attempted a career in the army, failing his officer’s exam and his attempt to get into the Foreign Office, he instead joined the Reuters news agency. It was here he learnt the basics of journalism and relished in reporting on the espionage trial in Russia. He left this position and worked in a bank in London before moving onto a stockbroker company. He soon changed jobs again and became, unexpectedly, the personal assistant to the Director of the Naval Intelligence, a job that transformed his life.

The first Bond novel, Casino Royal, was written in 1953, with one being released every year afterwards until 1966. Fleming had a major impact on British culture and there is a lot written about him. I could spent forever discussing all the things he did, especially about James Bond, so instead I suggest you check out the superb official website. Here you will find video, details information about Fleming’s life, his creation of the Bond novels, as well as his literary career, family, and even trivia.

Fleming is the kind of author I know of, but know little about aside from what he wrote. I have not read any of the James Bond novels, and I do not feel qualified to discuss them but there has been so much written about them it is worth looking up to find about the themes, ideas, and style through Flemings many books. I have however, read Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

I’m not sure how many people know that the creator of the suave spy James Bond is also the creator of the magical flying car that was turned into a wonderful movie with Dick Van Dyke but this little story is one that continues to delight. Three additions to the series were added by Frank Cottrell Boyce that carries on the magical adventures of the car, each having a new adventure and going new places..

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was a story created for Fleming’s son Caspar. In 1962 when Dr. No was being turned into a film, Fleming suffered a heart attack and was under orders not to work, instead he hand wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the story of adventures with a family and their magical car.

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Published: 22 October 1964
Publisher: Puffin
Pages: 113
Format: Book
Genre: Junior Fiction
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

“Crackpot” is what everybody calls the Pott family. So when they go to buy a new car and come back with a wreck, nobody is surprised. Except for the Potts themselves. First, the car has a name. And she tells them what it is. Then they find out that she can fly. And swim…Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a car on a mission to stop a criminal gang in its tracks — and she is taking the Potts with her!

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang follows the story of a car and the Pott family. Comander Caractacus Pott is an inventor, husband to Mimsie Pott and father to two twin children Jeremy and Jemima. After selling his whistle-like sweets to a sweets factory owned by Lord Skrumshus, Commander Pott buys and renovates an old car. At first the car is just big, impressive and powerful, but the Pott family soon learn that the car is alive, and just a little bit magical.

This was something I enjoyed because unlike the movie version it is made clear that Chitty herself is alive, not that Pott made her special. Chitty initiates all her magical elements such as flying, and floating through various scenarios in the book, not all extraordinary circumstances either. She indicates to Pott which buttons need pushing and what levers need pulling and marvellous things happen.

After a mishap at a family outing the Pott family end up in France where their adventures really kick off. I can’t say many of my family outings included dynamite and blowing up criminal hideouts, but then again what the British did in their free time is not my concern.

Some parts of the plot are actually really interesting and well written. Being a true Fleming story there are marvellous cars and technology, danger, gangsters, and thrilling plots galore. It is definitely an intriguing read and one that you can tell has come from the mind of the great James Bond creator. There is a great story here if you accept some of its peculiarities and absurdness. I understand this is supposed to be a children’s book of magic and adventure but you can’t ignore that some parts are slightly silly. The fact that the Pott family thought they could just blow up a part of the French cliffs and nobody will make a fuss, “Probably even give us medals” I recall Mr Pott saying, made me smile. Nothing like a good old British stab at the French. And the proximity of small children to dynamite was an interesting turn, but being the 60s and from the mind of Fleming it just adds to the excitement.

Having grown up on the film I enjoyed seeing the Pott family as a whole unit, and Commander Potts as quirky but competent. The key here, as with most children’s books, or any books really, is don’t expect them to be exactly like the film. Characters are added, removed, all in the name of storytelling. Unlike in the film, there is a Mrs Pott in the book, which immediately rules out the chance of a romance occurring for dear Mr Pott with the Skrumshus daughter (who is also absent). They always seem to break up the families, either for pity or for love interest when these movies are made, the same thing happened with Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory if I recall.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a relatively short book, definitely an easy read, and one that has and will continue to delight. I haven’t read any of the other books in the series by Frank Cottrell Boyce, and I am not entirely sure I want to. I am quite happy to enjoy Chitty Chitty Bang Bang as a standalone book, but who knows, one day I may stumble across the others and give them a go. As I say, don’t come looking to this book thinking it is like the movie, aside from some vague similarities in the beginning the rest is not the same at all and in its own right it is just as good.

Green Eggs and Ham by Dr Seuss

02 Mar 2014 Leave a comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Birthdays, General Tags: birthday, children's picture book, dr suess, five stars

A very happy birthday to the delightful Dr Seuss today. Today is Seuss’ 110th birthday, and at the time of this posting I am very disappointed there is still no sign of a Google Doodle commemorating this. The man who is most commonly known as Dr Seuss was actually born Theodor Seuss Geisel in 1904 and was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist. Son to Theodor Robert and Henrietta (Seuss) Geisel, he was also the grandson of German immigrants. Geisel lived in Springfield, Massachusetts, where his father ran a brewery and it was a street in this town that Geisel used as an inspiration for his first book as Dr Seuss, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. Geisel is mainly known for his children’s books written under his pen name Dr Seuss, though this was not the only pen name he used, in college he had written under Dr. Theophrastus Seuss and later used Theo LeSieg as well as Rosetta Stone. Through his life Geisel published a total of 46 children’s books, his most celebrated being The Cat and the Hat, as well as Horton Hears A Who!, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, The Lorax, as well as One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish plus many others. Seuss’ works are known for their imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of anapestic metre. His works have been adapted into many forms, including 11 television specials, four feature films, a Broadway musical, and four television series. As a cartoonist and illustrator, Geisel published works in advertising campaigns, and also worked as a political cartoonist in New York. In World War ll he put his skills to work in the animation department of the United States Army, and later won an Academy Award in 1947 for his film, Design for Death. It is hard to think of Geisel as anyone other than Dr Seuss, he has flooded out culture in so many ways as Seuss it is hard to see him as anyone else. He was an interesting guy though, and he contributed a lot more than just his work as Dr Seuss, but there is not doubt the impact those books have had on children as well as society as a whole. The term Grinch has become infiltrated into our culture, and many of his books and characters are as loved today as they were when they were first released. You can read more about Geisel here, and if you’re feeling particularly jovial and adventurous, check out Seussville.

Published: August 12, 1960
Publisher: Random House
Pages: 62
Format: Book
Genre: Children’s Picture Book
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – 5 Stars

When people think of Dr Seuss I think the one book that immediately comes to mind is The Cat in the Hat. I was never a huge fan of The Cat in the Hat, I liked many of his others though, I did always like Green Eggs and Ham. I like Green Eggs and Ham because it is not only a great book and very clever, but also because it has one of the best stories behind its creation, one of those great trivia stories about the origin of songs and books and all those things. The story of Green Eggs and Ham involved Seuss and his publisher Bennet Cerf, who after receiving a book of Suess’ of 225 words, made a bet he could not complete one containing only 50. The result is Green Eggs and Ham and it goes to show that you do not need a lot of words to make a story. It is a great idea; there is also an excellent Hank Green song that is similar where he sings a minute and a half song using only the same ten words. It isn’t the same as a story I grant you, but it very cool all the same. Green Eggs and Ham is a conversation between the unnamed narrator and a man known only as Sam-I-Am. Sam-I-Am continually pesters the narrator to sample the dish known as green eggs and ham, following him to various locations and asking him once more. It is a very simplistic story, but one that offers a range of great catchphrases and a joy in the fact the premise is so simple and jovial. The best part was that this simple story, containing only fifty different words, managed to get on the Banned Book list in People’s Republic of China. Much like The Lorax that people thought it was against loggers of some such nonsense, in 1965 Green Eggs and Ham was deemed to be considered a “portrayal of early Marxism”. This banning lasted until 1991 where it was lifted after the death of Seuss. Another fun fact, apparently in September 2013 it was read aloud in the US Senate as part of a Texas Senator’s 21 hour long speech advocating defunding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare). I won’t ruin the ending for you, and as engaging as the story is there isn’t a lot of character development though. We don’t get the typical back story about who Sam-I-Am is nor our mysterious narrator, but there is a suspense about the book which only adds to the enjoyment. It is a wonderful book, and I think everyone should read it, and other Seuss books, find their own favourites and read them regardless of who you are.

I wish Theodor Geisel a very happy birthday, and I hope Dr Seuss, no matter where you are whether here or Katroo, that the Birthday Bird throws an amazing party for you.

Oh, also, for those who are not sure how to pronounce Seuss, here is a rhyme to help.

“I’m sad to report, I’m sorry to say That Seuss is not pronounced at all in that way.
You choose to rhyme Seuss with goose juice and and moose juice
But that is not a pronunciation Seuss himself would choose
If he was here today and still had a voice
You would clearly hear him say “My name is Dr SOICE!”

And finally, just a quick note to say, do you know how weird it is to keep writing “I like Green Eggs and Ham” when that goes against everything you have heard!? It messes with you a small bit, it really does.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

25 Jun 2013 1 Comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Birthdays, General Tags: birthday, children, children's picture book, eric carle, five stars

A very happy birthday to Eric Carle today, author and illustrator of so many delightful books, who is 84!

Carle was born in 1929 in New York to German parents but went back to Germany when he was six years old. After harrowing experiences through the war, Carle returned to America in 1952 where he got a job as a graphic designer for the New York Times and later at an advertising agency.

The work of Eric Carle is easily recognisable, his artwork and illustrations are unique and his books tell of nature and the world. Carle himself said that with his books “I attempt to bridge the gap between the home and school. To me home represents, or should represent; warmth, security, toys, holding hands, being held. School is a strange and new place for a child…I believe the passage from home to school is the second biggest trauma of childhood; the first is, of course, being born…The unknown often brings fear with it. In my books I try to counteract this fear, to replace it with a positive message. I believe that children are naturally creative and eager to learn. I want to show them that learning is really both fascinating and fun.”

The way Carle makes his art is fascinating. I had never really thought about it before, I assume it was just paintings but apparently his work is created like a collage using hand painted papers that are cut and layered to form the images. There are also other techniques such as die-cut pages, and actual twinkling lights and noises in some books as well. All very high class compared to the felt puppets and faux fur I remember from my books.

My favourite book of Carle’s is of course The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I read this so many times as a kid it’s great. Yet another example of interaction and creative book creation, there are holes in the book, the pages are different sizes, it is amazing. It seems growing up Carle was familiar with different shaped books in Germany. I understand the reasons why but we need more books here that are weirdly shaped.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar was published in 1969 and the story behind it is rather cool. According to Carle, “One day I was punching holes with a hole puncher into a stack of paper, and I thought of a bookworm and so I created a story called A Week with Willi the Worm.” But how did we get to the caterpillar? Willi was a bookworm, but apparently poor Willi would not be a great protagonist as a green worm (poor Willi), then Carle’s editor suggested a caterpillar, which made Carle think of a butterfly and there you go. So in a sense we can all now say the very hungry caterpillar’s name is Willi. This must be made known to the world.

I must say, this was a fun review to write, short books, especially children’s books can bring out a silliness you really can’t get away with for big, long, serious books. If you don’t know the story of the very hungry caterpillar you may not want to read ahead, but even if it spoils it, which is will because there is nothing much else to talk about in there, then I half apologise and half demand you go read the book.

Published: September 29th 1994
Publisher: Puffin
Pages: 26
Format: Picture Book
Genre: Children’s Picture Book
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – 5 Stars

This is a story of suspense and tension. The main character of this story is born into a world in constant hunger and we follow him as he devours food at an alarming rate, never able to quench his hunger. Day after day he does nothing but eat, eating more and more as the days go by. He tries to be healthy in the beginning but as the days progress his hunger drives him to junk food and after all that cake and sugar and cheese…well, that’s right, he becomes ill. The suspense was amazing. Was this finally the way to stop this hunger machine before he ate through his world of food? Could this tummy ache be enough to stop his rampage on the food? Would there still be enough to support the remaining population? I had to read on to find out.

After having eaten so much this character had become so large he hides himself from the world. So large in fact he must built a house around himself to shield the judging eyes of the neighbours and those who come across him. Housebound, and living off the vast amount of food he’d consumed in his lifetime, this character is sheltered from the world. Until one day, after probably taking a good long hard look at what he’d become, had an instinctual desire to change himself, become a new and brighter person. After emerging slowly from his custom built house to this new world he was no longer a very hungry caterpillar, he was a beautiful butterfly (or he’d eaten himself into a food coma and was delusional about his true butterfly abilities. Either way).