The Eensy-Weensy Spider [Hardcover]

Mary Ann Hoberman (Author), Nadine Bernard Westcott (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2000 | Grade Level: P and up

"Every child has enjoyed singing this classic rhyme, and now in this fun-filled adaptation, readers can find out just what happens to the eensy-weensy spider after she leaps off the waterspout! With musical notation and hand-motion instructions included, this lively picture book will have kids clamoring to read it again and again.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Capering caterpillars and blooming spring flowers ornament this bouncy reprise of a nursery standby. The book opens with musical stanzas for "The Eensy-Weensy Spider," along with a diagram of hand and arm gestures to be performed by the singer. A carnation-pink spider climbs a crocus-blue waterspout, while subsequent spreads describe the eight-legged heroine's garden adventures, all in keeping with the original tune: "The eensy-weensy spider met a baby bug./ 'Hi!' said the spider and gave the bug a hug./ 'Ugh!' said the bug. 'Your hug is much too tight!'/ 'I'm sorry,' said the spider. 'I meant to be polite.' " Hoberman (A House Is a House for Me) invents everyday scenarios in which the spider interacts with her friendly insect neighbors (e.g., she gets assistance from a glow worm when the sun goes down). Westcott (I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly) conjures the cozy vignettes with dainty pen-and-ink outlines and fresh watercolor hues of daffodil yellow and misty green. The spider's mother sits down to a meal of curds and whey, and the eensy-weensy spider drifts off to sleep in a spun-silk hammock. These pleasing new stanzas extend a favorite song and lend personality to an indomitable creature who never lets a little rain get in her way. Ages 4-8. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-This expanded version of the popular hand rhyme takes the tiny spider on a series of further adventures. She skips out to play, meets a baby bug, takes a walk, goes for a swim with a frog, marches in a parade, falls and scrapes her knees, plops into a brook, buys new shoes (three pairs), follows a glowworm home in the dark, and falls asleep. "The eensy-weensy spider slept right through the night./When she awoke, the sun was shining bright./'Good,' said the spider, 'there isn't any rain!'/And the eensy-weensy spider went up the spout again." Whimsical, watercolor cartoons capture the lighthearted tone of the verse as they depict the spider and her insect friends' anthropomorphized world. This sprightly adaptation lends itself to singing aloud and is sure to be a hit.
Sally R. Dow, Ossining Public Library, NY
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers; 1st edition (April 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316363308
• ISBN-13: 978-0316363303
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,041,177 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An easy-reading, fun pick., April 7, 2000

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Eensy-Weensy Spider (Hardcover)

An easy-reading, fun pick. Mary Ann Hoberman adapts The Eensy-Weensy Spider, which takes the classic rhyme and explores what happens to the spider after the spout incident. Nadine Bernard Westcott's illustrations are hilarious.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This one will be a classic in your child's library., September 13, 2005

By 

M. Peluso - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Eensy Weensy Spider (Board book)

This book is one of my sons favorites. (17 months) The illustrations are great and the authors make a cute little day-long adventure for the eensy weensy spider. The book is actually pretty long so it works well for a bedtime story. I would also suggest "The Lady with the Alligator Purse" and "Miss Mary Mack" by the same two authors. All three of these books are illustrated from a unique point of view that I think children like because they get to see things from a semi-birds view rather than their usual worms eye view.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ADORABLE, February 5, 2004

By 

Carol C. "ccjello" (Kansas City, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Eensy Weensy Spider (Board book)

This delightfully illustrated book contains a series of independent verses about the adventures of little pink spider with a blue hat, as she marches in a parade, hugs a baby bug, swims with a frog, buys new shoes, and such. The spider is SO DARN CUTE, it should cure any bug phobic. (If only spiders were so cute in real life). This book is a tad long, perhaps a bit too long for the youngest child. Each two-page spread contains a full verse. The first spread contains the traditional eensy-weensy spider verse; each subsequent spread contains a variation of the traditional verse. My favorite --
The eensy weensy spider fell down and scraped her knees.
"Ouch!" cried the spider. "I need some Band-Aids, please!"
"How many?" asked her mama. "I only have a few."
Said the eensy-weensy spider, "Six of them will do."
Overall, the book is delightful, a little longer & more complex than the typical board book.