The+Very+Hungry+Caterpillar

=__The Very Hungry Caterpillar __= Written & Illustrated By: Eric Carle Book Review By: Lauren Ball

**//Bibliographic Information//** Title: __The Very Hungry Caterpillar__ Author: Eric Carle Illustrator: Eric Carle Publisher: Philomel Books Publication Date: 1969 Age Level: Ages 3 to 8 Number of Pages: 10 Language: English ISBN-13: 978-0399250392 Price: On Amazon $18.78 New (As of 4/22/12).

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">1) Theme: The theme that is shown is metamorphosis. This is worth imparting to children because it is a major process and the children should know what it is. The theme develops naturally throughout the story. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">2) Plot Development: This book tells a great story. What makes the story effective is the fact that it is a toy concept book. It makes learning about metamorphosis fun. Children will definitely enjoy seeing all of the foods the caterpillar eats and what he turns into in the end. The action in the book is when the caterpillar eats and when he goes through metamorphosis. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3) Character Development: The character is introduced through narration. The character is convincing, but not exactly credible because a real caterpillar would not eat all of the foods that this one did. The behavior of the character though is consistent with its background. The author shows development by showing the process of going from an egg to a butterfly.
 * //<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Analysis of Literary Elements //**

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">4) Writing Style: The style of the writing is appropriate to the subject. This is because the writing is short and very easy for a younger reader to understand. The style is very straightforward. The author creates a good mood by having the caterpillar constantly be hungry and eat well known foods. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">5) **<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Illustrations: **The illustrations are excellent and are used to help tell the story of the very hungry caterpillar. The illustrations are large, simple, and colorful. Eric Carle makes sure to leave enough white space so that it is clear what the reader should focus on. For example, each food the caterpillar eats is on its own page. The illustrations are appealing to young children because they are so inviting. The children will easily be able to relate to the story. Children will be able to identify the different foods the caterpillar eats because they are well known foods. The illustrations are also significant. One reason for this is because they illustrate metamorphosis. This is a topic that will be covered in school and this book illustrates the process. It could be used in the classroom to introduce this unit. Another reason the illustrations are significant is because they show progression. Each day the caterpillar eats more and more food. The caterpillar starts by eating something small and by the end the caterpillar is eating something large.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">//**Synopsis**// <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This story starts out with an egg. From the egg hatches a caterpillar. The story goes on to follow the progress of a hungry little caterpillar as he eats his way through a varied and very large quantity of food until, full at last, he forms a cocoon around himself and goes to sleep. He then becomes a beautiful butterfly.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">**//Personal Reaction//** <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This was one of my favorite books growing up. I can remember that after reading this book in class and discussing metamorphosis, we got baby caterpillars to keep in the classroom. We watched them hatch, grow, and then turn into butterflies. I was chosen to be the person who got to let all of the butterflies go at the end. It was so exciting and from then on my mom and I always got caterpillar eggs and went through the process for a few years. I also liked how to find out what the caterpillar ate by flipping the flaps. That was my favorite part of the whole book. Last, the illustrations were so well done. They were so unique looking and I really enjoyed just looking at the pictures.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">//**Author Bio**// <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Eric Carle was born in Syracuse, New York in 1929. When he was six years old his family moved to Germany. There he graduated from a prestigious art school. In 1952, he moved back to the United States and lived in New York. He was working as a graphic designer for the New York Times when Bill Martin Jr asked him to illustrate his book __Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?.__ After that, Eric Carle became a writer and an illustrator. He went on to write __1,2,3 Zoo__ and __The Very Hungry Caterpillar__. He creates his unique illustrations using a collage technique. __The Very Hungry Caterpillar__ has been translated into 50 different languages and has sold 33million copies. Since then he has illustrated more than seventy books.

//**Related Links**// <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">[|The Very Hungry Caterpillar Read Aloud]