Newcomer Bono's spot-on premise that kids have conflicted feelings about bugs ties together this bouncy volume in verse: "If you spied a centipede slithering by, would you reach for a stick? Run away? Start to cry?" Her artwork integrates three-dimensional, startlingly realistic clay sculptures of insects into brightly colored pencil portraits of round-headed, skeptical-looking kids, allowing readers to identify with the scenarios. In some pictures, the bugs appear nearly to scale, but more threatening species loom large (a bee is shown in such close-up detail that the pollen on his body looks like shag carpeting). With tongue firmly in cheek, Bono pleads for greater reflection vis-a-vis the insect world: "Do dragonflies suddenly swoop down and hover? They're just being nosy so don't run for cover." In the accompanying picture of twins, one girl looks delighted with the insect, the other hides behind her sister. Although the author/artist may not fully assuage the fears of the insect-squeamish or convert the bug-squashing enthusiast, she successfully demonstrates that it's possible to have a sense of humor and a heart about the critters: "Next time you see a bug don't make a fuss after all, there's a lot more of them than of us." Ages 4-8.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2-"What do you do when a bug's bugging you?" asks Bono in this colorful picture book, and she goes on to imagine various situations in which a child might meet an insect: "Do dragonflies suddenly swoop down and hover? They're just being nosy so don't run for cover." Many of the most common insects are covered, including the fly, ant, beetle, ladybug, centipede, and grasshopper, each one on a page or spread, accompanied by a couplet. Bono creates realistic three-dimensional creatures from clay and wire, setting them against wonderfully bright watercolor-and-pencil illustrations showing children encountering bugs as they play. The text aims to reassure youngsters that most bugs will leave people alone if not bothered, and ends with the admonition: "-please don't forget that/whoever they are-/bugs are happier when/they are not in a jar." A delightful book, well produced, whose large colorful format makes it well suited as an introduction to a bug storytime, perhaps paired with one or more of Eric Carle's titles.
Judith Constantinides, formerly at East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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