Book Review: The Bad Tempered Ladybird by Eric Carle

Source: Google Images
A friend of mine gifted us this book and we all loved it. Ladybirds are a favorite with the kids with my elder one often having mistaken them for M&Ms when she was small.

The story begins on a fine morning, when a bad-tempered ladybird and a friendly lady bird land on a leaf, both wanting to eat the aphids. Only the bad-tempered ladybird does not want to share and gets into a rude fight with the friendly ladybird. Not only that, she is in such a state of huff that she even thinks of picking up a fight with each animal she meets during the course of the day, only just backing out in time, perhaps realizing how big they are!

In the evening, she is propelled by the giant flipper of the whale and lands right back on the same leaf as in the morning. She also meets the friendly ladybird who has generously left some aphids for her to eat. This time the bad-tempered ladybird remembers her manners and politely thanks the friendly ladybird and after the crunchy treat, they go to sleep.  They are also thanked by the grateful leaf. The moon comes out and the fireflies come dancing.

This is one of those slightly bulkier hard books, with lots of pictures and amazing illustrations which not only tell us the very interesting story of the bad-tempered ladybird's escapades, but also can be used to understand the concept of size and time. There are tiny clock faces for each meeting with the animals and the typography increases with the increase in size of the animal too. Very brilliantly done.  The stress on politeness and good manners doesn't go missed either. Like you can choose how to respond to someone who is rude to you. The only thing that puzzled me was the book said it is for kids for 10 months plus, though both my 3.5 and 6-year olds relished it.

P.S. - This was first posted here  at Indian Moms Connect.

Comments

  1. Anonymous3 April 2013 at 09:21

    This sounds like a book that I would enjoy too! :D

    I love ladybirds, too, but have never seen one in reality. Pity, no? :(

    BTW, have you read the Paddington Bear series with your kids? I absolutely adore it! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Chatty Wren3 April 2013 at 09:36

    Hey, TGND, thanks for the recommendation, I haven't read this out to my kids! Will try and get hold of it. Well, ladybirds are pretty! And here I think my kids don't see enough of regular everyday insects and reptiles that we kind of take so much for granted back home!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Shilpa Garg3 April 2013 at 10:37

    Wow! This book I'll surely pick up for my niece. I have seen that the age group mentioned on the books most of the time is actually not right!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Chatty Wren3 April 2013 at 12:03

    Thanks Shilpa, Welcome here! Yes it is a fun book, I liked it too! Agree on the bit about age groups not being right too often, I just go by what I like.

    ReplyDelete
  5. pankti4 April 2013 at 12:56

    Sounds interesting...Let me see if i can get this for Zini :)
    Ladybugs and M&M - Cute!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chatty Wren4 April 2013 at 17:44

      Am sure she will love it ZM. There are many concepts in the book, and of course the illustrations!

      Delete

Post a Comment

Leave a comment!

Popular posts from this blog

The slow thawing

I realise I am inconsistent in lots of stuff and instead of my usual defensive spiel,  here is a quiet acceptance of that. Guilty of that and many more things....but not being disciplined tops the list. It shows how I take care of myself, how I keep order at home, how I generally mange myself and my world. How easy it is for me to not keep up to anything consistently....Its embarassing, its seen in the constant self-talk I have with myself. It shows up in stuff pending over the week and taking over weekend, it shows in the amount of dirt that came out of cleaning under the dish-washer, just one of those things which I had been forever planning to do; it shows in how I finally managed to paint my toe-nails after one year - sometimes there was no nailpolish remover; or nail polish itself; other times it was something I remembered just before bedtime or just when stepping out, hence no time to dry itself; sometimes I did remember but pushed it away for a bit and then forgot because so...
Read more

May 2013 - The Elusive One

Image
Think back to a month in your life. Do you remember any month or period specifically from the sweeping past or present? Maybe the month before the board exams, last month in the hostel eagerly awaiting to get back home, the month before you were getting hitched that was crammed with frantic shopping and plans on the side to run-away solo or when you were expecting your first baby, waiting for the moment and savoring the peace as you balance one of the last books you will read in peace on your tummy.. I seem to have always had conflicting emotions in every situation, constant yin-yang and the entire range in between. As a part of this group  celebrating our first anniversary on June 2, 2013, we were given a small challenge. Totally voluntary, I must add. The theme being 'The Elusive One'. One could choose to do something new, make a small change in your lifestyle, person..something you've been putting off for too long. You get the drift, move out of your comfort zones and ...
Read more

New Year Resolutions - Blogathon 2014 Post 1

Hello all! This is the first in the series of posts for the month of January, Blogathon initiative by Dreamy Mommy here . Today's prompt is New Year Resolutions. In fact, in my hastily scribbled end-of-year post I did touch briefly on this. In the last few years, I like to make resolutions or declarations, whichever, in writing. This is because in the course of steering one'e life through uncharted waters and all that, it is easy to land up someplace you simply did not intend going. My main compass-points for this year are - 1. Take one day at a time - each day is important, value it. 2. Move it, move it - So get moving in some way - a walk, a jog, yoga, dance... 3. Reflect before you speak and/or write. 4. Take responsibility for yourself and what you want to do, easy just does not do it. 5. Be thankful, be grateful, be positive and open-minded. Appreciate differences. 6. Put everything down and listen to my kids when they are talking - even if they are repeating ...
Read more