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Insects are popular figures for many childrens' books
Most parents and grandparents have spent time reading children’s books to the young sprouts in their lives.
 
Reading books to kids has been a popular activity for many, many years. So much so that publishing books for children is a multimillion-dollar business. Even today, when e-books and audio books constitute an ever-growing proportion of the book industry, printed books for children are good sellers. In 2015, the Assoc. of American Publishers reported significant growth in the number of books sold in the children and young adult category, while sales in other book categories declined.
 
Exactly when books specifically for children were first published is difficult to establish. Some people suggest that this literary genre began in 1744 in England, when John Newbery wrote and published A Little Pretty Pocket-Book. The book was designed so that children would have fun while learning. The publishing company founded by Newbery published a number of children’s books during its history. In 1922,
 
The American Library Assoc. named its annual award for outstanding contribution to children’s literature the “Newbery Medal.”
 
In 1801, John Harris purchased the Newbery publishing firm. Harris began publishing playful books for children, because he had noticed such books sold better than books designed to teach a lesson.
 
That’s why he published a book in 1806 titled The Butterfly’s Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast. This book was  based on a poem that William Roscoe had written for his 10 children. It is a whimsical story about insects and other animals going to a party.
 
The book incorporated a number of colored plates, and is touted by some as the first children’s book with colored illustrations. The Butterfly’s Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast, one of the most famous of the early children’s books, featured several species of insects. I am sure inquiring minds want to know: “Are there insect books on bestseller lists of children’s books today”? The answer is yes, but not many.
 
One such list of 20 titles is based on the total number of books sold, and includes six Dr. Seuss books, four Harry Potter books, four Golden books, and two Shel Silverstein books. In case you are wondering, the No. 1 best-seller is a 1942 Golden Book titled The Poky Little Puppy, by Janette Sebring Lowrey.
 
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is No. 20. Carle’s other books about insects that sold well are The Grouchy Ladybug, The Very Quiet Cricket, and The Honeybee and the Robber. All of Carle’s insect books are brightly colored and creatively illustrated.
 
Another list of children’s books is Scholastic Parent & Child magazine’s 100 Greatest Books for Kids. This list has The Very Hungry Caterpillar at No. 12. The first book on the Parent & Child list is Charlotte’s Web.
 
This 1953 children’s novel by E. B. White featured Wilbur the pig and a barn spider named Charlotte. Spiders aren’t insects, but both are arthropods – jointfooted creatures.
 
Another title on the Parent & Child list is Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin. This book is about an earthworm and his spider friend, who have many of the same problems that human school kids do. No. 77 on the list is a book titled Hi! Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold. This is the first in a series that began with a fly looking for a meal, and a boy looking for an animal for a pet show. The 17- book series includes titles such as: Shoo, Fly Guy!, Super Fly Guy, and There Was on Old Lady Who Swallowed Fly Guy.
 
Next to last on the Parent & Child list is Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices. This 1988 book by Paul Fleischman has poems about many insects including grasshoppers, mayflies, fireflies, digger wasps, cicadas and honey bees. As the title suggests, the poems are to be read aloud as a round by two people. For example, in the poem Fireflies, we find the following lines: “Light/ is the ink we use./ Night/ is our parchment” and “Insect calligraphers/ practicing penmanship”.
 
Joyful Noise is an award-winning book.  It received the John Newbery Medal for the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. I have to agree that it is a unique and fun book, and not just because it is about insects. Anyone who considers insect sounds a joyful noise gets my vote.
 
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World.
4/20/2017