The Roly Poly Spider [Library Binding]

Jill Sardegna (Author), Tedd Arnold (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1994 | Age Level: 3 and up

Parodying the classic The Itsy Bitsy Spider, the hilarious story tells of a Roly Poly Spider who has all of her friends for lunch--literally--and becomes so chubby that she cannot get up the water spout.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Using catchy verses that follow the rhyme scheme of "The Itsy-Bitsy Spider," Sardegna (K Is for Kiss Goodnight) presents a seemingly sunny tale which, on closer inspection, masks abundant unpleasantness. This yellow, appropriately bug-eyed spider appears jolly, but is in fact a selfish and crafty creature who lures bugs to her web by complaining of loneliness, engages them in friendly chat, then eats them. "She snagged a caterpillar/ and asked him, 'What's your name?'/ He said, 'My name is Lester./ I'm handsome as can be.'/ Said the roly-poly spider,/ 'You look like lunch to me.'" She's only following nature, of course, but her lack of menace and casual slaughter will likely disturb the book's intended audience-the cuddly victims here will evoke more sympathy than the eponymous protagonist. Unfortunately, Arnold's (Green Wilma) outwardly playful watercolor and colored- pencil compositions reinforce the mayhem of massacre, as they depict a half-eaten ladybug in the spider's mouth, a hapless "great big fly" ensnared between two pie crusts, etc. Ages 3-6.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1?This must be the Itsy Bitsy Spider's evil twin, craftily luring creatures into her sticky web. Once stuck, the victims are devoured in sadistic ways. The roly-poly arachnid eats a bee's knees, sticks a straw in a beetle for beetle juice, and creates a crunchy shoefly pie, among other things. Her ravenous appetite catches up with her, though, when she gets stuck in a water spout. Try singing the words of this funny picture book to the familiar tune; they're interchangeable. That fact alone makes Sardegna's book worth a try, but coupled with Arnold's cartoons, this offering is a real winner. Watercolor and colored-pencil artwork in bright yellows, greens, and lavenders give the story a lighthearted tone. The yellow spider is huge and sphere-shaped, with bulging eyes and diminutive legs. The art is a delight, right down to the webbed endpapers.?Lynn Cockett, Nutley Public Library, NJ
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Library Binding: 1 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Trade (November 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590471198
• ISBN-13: 978-0590471190
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,990,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute Story, May 31, 2003

By 

Mrs J (Manchester, NH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Roly Poly Spider (Library Binding)

As a preschool teacher I can say that my children enjoyed this book. The story is a light-hearted poem that teaches children about nature and the food chain.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute characters with story done in rhyme for this Food Chain story., October 9, 2006

By 

Cady Hayden "Children's Book Author" (Bergenfield, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Roly Poly Spider (Library Binding)

The roly poly spider eats a lot and gets rounder and rounder. She waits for her prey on the side of her web and watches them squirm. Once she knows they are stuck in her web, she smiles and then eats them. I very much enjoyed the rhyming in this story. It flowed properly and almost in song. Some of the pictures were a bit morbid for really young kids who like flies and other insects such as, "The roly poly spider was casting out a line: she hooked a spotted beetle and reeled him in to dine. 'Sorry,' said the beetle, 'I really shouldn't stay.' But the roly poly spider drank beetle juice that day." and you see the beetle drained with it's eyes popped out of its head with a straw in its back and juice being sucked out of him, but in a cute cartoon style. This book is fun and teaches kids about the food chain and how and what spiders eat; I just wish the spider got eaten in the end to show the full cycle.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars DISTURBING!, July 21, 2009

By 

amguen "amguen" (somewhere in the middle) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Roly-Poly Spider (Paperback)

I picked this book up at the library without looking through it first. That is the last time I will do that! I sat down to read it to my 3 and 4 year olds and was horrified by the content. There are better ways to illustrate the food chain than to have the spider is eat its "friends". The "prey" were way too personalized.

Inside the flap of the book it says:

"The roly-poly spider longs to have some friends for lunch--literally! A beetle, a caterpillar, and a bee soon find that their hungry friend wants more than just their company. She is planning to eat them!"