The Very Hungry Caterpillar

The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Front cover illustration
Author(s)	Eric Carle
Illustrator	Eric Carle
Cover artist	Eric Carle
Country	USA
Genre(s)	Children's picture book
Publisher	Putnam/Philomel (US) Hamish Hamilton (UK)
Publication date	1969
Media type	hardcover, board book
Pages	22bv
ISBN	0-399-22690-7 (US)
OCLC Number	21134403

The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a children's picture book designed, illustrated and written by Eric Carle, first published by the World Publishing Company in 1969, later published by Penguin Putnam. The book follows a caterpillar as it eats its way through a wide variety of foodstuffs before pupating and emerging as a butterfly. The winner of many children's literature awards and a major graphic design award, it has sold 30 million copies worldwide. It has been described as having sold the equivalent of a copy per minute since its publication. It features distinctive collage illustrations (Carle's third book, and a new style at the time), 'eaten' holes in the pages and simple text with educational themes – counting, the days of the week, foods, and a butterfly's life stages. There have been a large number of related books and other products, including educational tools, created in connection to the book. Whilst the caterpillar's diet is fictional, rather than scientifically accurate, The Very Hungry Caterpillar introduces concepts of Lepidoptera life stages where transformations take place including the ultimate metamorphosis from 'hungry caterpillar' to 'beautiful butterfly', and the book has been endorsed by the Royal Entomological Society. It has been described as "one of the greatest childhood classics of all time."

Synopsis

• The book starts with an egg on a leaf, in the light of the moon.
• The sun comes up and a tiny caterpillar emerges and looks for food.
• On consecutive days, the caterpillar eats through a single red apple, two (green) pears, three (purple) plums, four strawberries, and five oranges, which takes us from Monday to Friday.
• Saturday: the caterpillar eats its way through many different foods: chocolate cake, ice-cream, a pickle, Swiss cheese, salami, a lollipop, cherry pie, a sausage, a cupcake, and a slice of watermelon. The caterpillar gets stomach ache as a result of eating all this food.
• Sunday: the caterpillar eats through a single leaf, which makes the caterpillar feel better.
• The now big caterpillar forms a cocoon (since the titular character is not a moth larva, this is poetic license).
• On the final pages the caterpillar is now a 'beautiful' butterfly.

Development

The original title of the book was to have been A Week with Willi Worm, featuring a bookworm named Willi. However, Carle's editor advised that a green worm would not make a very likable protagonist.

The book was inspired by a hole puncher:

"One day I was punching holes with a hole puncher into a stack of paper, and I thought of a bookworm and so I created a story called 'A Week with Willi the Worm'. Then my editor suggested a caterpillar instead and I said 'Butterfly!' That's how it began," said Carle.

Awards and accolades

The book has won numerous awards, including an American Institute of Graphic Arts Award in 1970, the Selection du Grand Prix des Treize in France in 1972, and the Nakamori Reader's Prize in Japan in 1975.

The New York Times cited it as one of the "Ten Best Picture Books of the Year" in 1969. The book placed at number 199 in the Big Read, a 2003 poll conducted by the BBC to determine the United Kingdom's best loved books. It was one of the few picture books to place on the list.

Educational and cultural influence

The book has been translated into over 50 languages,^{[citation needed]} including French, Spanish, Chinese and Russian. It has been used by elementary school teachers, librarians, and parents, as a teaching aid, with activities developed which use the book It was used by President George W. Bush when reading to children during his presidential campaigns, as well as by his mother, former first lady Barbara Bush, as part of her campaign to promote literacy.

Google search page on the 40th anniversary of The Very Hungry Caterpillar

In 2009, Google celebrated the book's 40th anniversary by changing the logo on its main search page to the style used in the book.

In 2011, the American Academy of Pediatrics sent out special copies of the book, with associated learning tools, to health providers, to promote healthy eating in the U.S.

Adaptations

It was adapted for television in 1993 by the UK based Illuminated Film Company as part of an anthology called The World of Eric Carle that included four other Carle stories: The Very Quiet Cricket, The Mixed Up Chameleon, Papa, Please Get The Moon For Me and I See A Song. Narration on the DVD release of the programme, entitled The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Stories, was performed by Roger McGough and Juliet Stevenson, while in the U.S. version, distributed by Disney, narration was by Brian Cummings and Linda Gary. Subsequent to that adaptation, the film and TV rights were sold for £1 million.

Ancillary products

There have been numerous different editions of the book, with various additional features, as well as games incorporating copies of the book. Examples include a pop-up version and a book/card game combination from University Games. Other toys and educational resources based upon or featuring The Very Hungry Caterpillar are also plentiful.

An educational video game based on the book, titled The Very Hungry Caterpillar's ABCs, was released by CYBIRD Co. Ltd. for WiiWare on September 20, 2010.

In Popular Culture

• In one episode of MAD called "Fast Hive", Tigger and Piglet fly out of the Winnie the Pooh book and end up in this book, where the Very Hungry Caterpillar gives them some honey.
• In one episode of Dexter, his son is said to have read The Very Hungry Caterpillar with his nanny.

External links

• "Caterpillar Exchange" teacher's resource page at Carle website
• The World of Eric Carle at the Internet Movie Database