What About Ladybugs? (Sierra Club Books (Sierra)) [Paperback]

Celia Godkin (Author)

Book Description

Series: Sierra Club Books (Sierra)

There once was a garden alive with flowers, fruits, and vegetables. While the gardener was pleased with the plants, he wasn't so sure about all the insects that called the garden home. He liked the bright red ladybugs, and he knew that the bees and butterlies pollinated the flowers, but some of the bugs were nothing but trouble.
One day the gardener thought, If I get rid of the bad insects, my garden will be perfect--and he sprayed all the plants with bug killer. But the results were far from perfection! As his beautiful garden came close to ruin, the gardener began to see that the plants and insects were linked, that they depended on one another to survive. But how could he undo the damage?
Accompanied by vibrant, beautifully detailed illustrations, this simple story of one garden introduces young children to the important concept of the balance of nature. Youngsters will be both reassured and enlightened when they find out how everybody's favorite insect--the ladybug--saves the day.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-A picture book about the balance of nature in a garden. A man watches his plants grow, only to see them destroyed by aphids. He sprays with chemicals, but sees no improvement. Eventually, he orders a supply of ladybugs and releases them; they eat the aphids and restore the garden to its original health and beauty. Information about insects that are helpful and how some bugs can be both beneficial and destructive are woven throughout the story. Narrative and illustrations effectively demonstrate how each creature and plant plays a vital role. The visually appealing double-page, cover-to-cover illustrations place readers in a setting of soft natural hues. The plants and insects, done in brighter colors, are greatly magnified at times, enabling the eye to focus on changes in the foliage. A plea to children to value organic gardening, and a useful book for classes studying and protecting the environment.
Diane Nunn, Richard E. Byrd Elementary School, Glen Rock, NJ
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

There once was a garden alive with flowers, fruits, and vegetables. While the gardener was pleased with the plants, he wasn't so sure about all the insects that called the garden home. He liked the bright red ladybugs, and he knew that the bees and butterlies pollinated the flowers, but some of the bugs were nothing but trouble.
One day the gardener thought, If I get rid of the bad insects, my garden will be perfect--and he sprayed all the plants with bug killer. But the results were far from perfection! As his beautiful garden came close to ruin, the gardener began to see that the plants and insects were linked, that they depended on one another to survive. But how could he undo the damage?
Accompanied by vibrant, beautifully detailed illustrations, this simple story of one garden introduces young children to the important concept of the balance of nature. Youngsters will be both reassured and enlightened when they find out how everybody's favorite insect--the ladybug--saves the day.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 40 pages
• Publisher: Sierra Club Books for Children (April 26, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0871569213
• ISBN-13: 978-0871569219
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,816,243 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For the young naturalist, May 8, 2005

By 

Occasional Reviewer (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What About Ladybugs? (Sierra Club Books (Sierra)) (Paperback)

I was looking for books that I could purchase for our daughter who loves ladybugs when I came across this one. It is not your average ladybug book in which there is a main character who is a humanized ladybug (we have those too!). Yet it is not a hard science book telling you scientific data about ladybugs. It is a story about a gardener who finds out the hard way how important ladybugs are to his garden, and in the process how all of the living things in the garden are intertwined.

The idea that bugs are beneficial is incorporated into the beginning of the story, telling, for example, how the gardener knew that butterflies are good for the garden, but that when they are still caterpillars they are not. The plot of the book is that the gardener, in search of garden perfection, decides that he wants to get rid of the "bad" bugs so he sprays the garden with pesticide. The balance of nature in the garden is then thrown off and he ends up with a way worse situation than he had to start with, including an overabundance of aphids. It is then ladybugs to the rescue!

This book delivers a "green" message without being preachy in any way. It would be an enjoyable story for a ladybug lover, a bug lover, a nature lover, or a little gardener.