Product Description

This is the diary . . . of a worm. Surprisingly, a worm not that different from you or me. Except he eats his homework. Oh, and his head looks a lot like his rear end.

Doreen Cronin, the New York Times best-selling author of CLICK, CLACK, MOO and GIGGLE, GIGGLE, QUACK, teams up with illustrator Harry Bliss for this hysterical journal about the daily doings and the hidden world of a lovable underground dweller.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7411 in Books
• Published on: 2003-09-01
• Released on: 2003-08-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 40 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780060001506
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Amazon.com Review
Doreen Cronin (Click, Clack Moo: Cows That Type) and cartoonist Harry Bliss (illustrator of A Fine, Fine School) shed a whole new light on a creature that spends most of its time underground: the earthworm. Written in diary form, this truly hilarious picture book tracks the ins and outs of a worm's life from the perspective of the worm family's young son. Take June 15's entry: "My older sister thinks she's so pretty. I told her that no matter how much time she spends looking in the mirror, her face will always look just like her rear end. Spider thought that was really funny. Mom did not." Except for the fact that he can't chew gum or have a dog, the boy likes being a worm. He never has to go to the dentist ("No cavities--no teeth, either"), he never gets in trouble for tracking mud through the house, and he never has to take a bath. As long as he can remember Mom's rule "Never bother Daddy when he's eating the newspaper," all is well. Bliss's endearing cartoonish illustrations of anthropomorphized worms are clever visual punchlines for Cronin's delightfully deadpan humor. For example, "June 5: Today we made macaroni necklaces in art class" sounds normal enough until you see the worms wearing one piece of macaroni around their necks, taking up a good part of each worm's body. Children and adults alike will adore this worm's eye perspective on the world. (Ages 6 and older) --Karin Snelson

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3-A baseball-capped crawler gives readers an episodic glimpse into the vicissitudes of his life in these hilarious diary entries. Difficulties such as having no arms, having a head that looks a lot like your rear end, and facing the dangers imposed by people digging for bait are balanced by a loving family and good friends. The young protagonist describes playing with his friend Spider, engaging in a variety of activities at school, and interacting with his parents and sister. Packed into these droll slice-of-worm-life vignettes are a few facts about earthworms and their behavior, all rendered with a dry sense of humor. The full-color watercolor-and-ink illustrations sprawl across the pages in lush earth tones. Bliss's cartoons give the worms lots of personality without overly anthropomorphizing them. The use of multiple perspectives will have children eagerly looking at the pictures to identify objects and locales. Primary-grade youngsters will especially appreciate the classroom scenes. This quirky worm's-eye view of the world makes these ubiquitous invertebrates a little more understandable and a lot more fun.
Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha's Public Library, WI
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
PreS-Gr. 1. The verbal puns and the wry, colorful cartoons create a funny worm's-eye view of the world in this playful picture book. There's no sustained story here, as there was in Cronin's wonderful Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type (2000), but the hilarious vignettes of the worm-child with his family, friends, and enemies show the absurd in humans as much as in the wriggling creatures in the earth. When the worm forgets his lunch, he eats his homework, and he loves telling his older sister that her face will always look like her rear end. One advantage of being a worm is that he never has to go to the dentist: no cavities. "No teeth, either," says Dr. D. Kay. The pictures are both silly and affectionate, whether the worm holds a pencil or hugs his favorite pile of dirt. And there's always the elemental child appeal of how it feels to be tiny in a world of giants. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Hysterical read for kids AND parents!
"Diary of a Worm" is a prime example of how the right combination of illustrator and author can make an amazing book!

As part of the Junior Girl Scout "Books Badge," I asked my 12-year-old Girl Scouts to read a review of "Diary of a Worm," then read the book and see if they agreed with the reviewer's opinion. Well, those 12-year-olds were soon cracking up at the idea of a worm diary, but they laughed even more at the directions in which the illustrator took the diary entries.

When the little boy worm writes, "July 4... When I grow up, I want to be a Secret Service agent..." my girls roared at the picture of two little worm agents in sunglasses and earpieces, wearing black suit jackets (no pants, of course). They laughed even harder as one girl pointed out, "Look! He drew the jacket with sleeves, but they've got no arms to put in them!"

How funny are these little details? Take a close look at: a dentist whose name tag reads "Dr. D. Kay"; macaroni necklaces consisting of one piece of macaroni that completely encircles the worm's neck; and the books that the worm is dragging home from school, with the titles "DIGGING - A History" or "Compost 101."

The funniest bits, however, are the illustrations on the book's endpapers! They are meant to look like the little worm's scrapbook, and have family photos with his captions written underneath. A picture of him with a baseball says "I found this really cool rock!" Another drawing is a corner of a $20 bill with the caption "Isn't this leaf awesome?"

My five year old son adores this book. AND so do I, AND so do all of my 12 year old Girl Scouts! No mean feat (or feet, either!) (sorry, couldn't resist a "feet" joke)

We all HIGHLY recommend this book. :-)

No Wonder This Book Tops The Bestseller List
The most entertaining, truly hilarious picture book I have picked up in a long time! This one crosses the line of humor, in that small children, to whom it is being read, will "get it," but the adults reading will be howling. I always enjoy a Cronin read, but she has surpassed herself this time. Favorite entry in the diary: his comments on his sister's enjoying her own reflection.

Humorous and different
My 3 1/2 year old son loves this book, and so do his parents! I bet my son will think twice next time he wants to step on a worm. I really recommend this book because it's really funny; some of the things I have to explain to my son, in a humorous way of course, but that's part of our bonding while book-reading. It's a great book.