Thank you, teacher from the Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Eric Carle, a prolific author and illustrator of children’s books, died in 2021, but his website is still active and luckily more books written by him are being published as he sold his rights to PenguinRandomHouse in 2021. For more about him and his work see https://eric-carle.com/

This charming board book extolls the virtues of saying thank you to someone who has helped a child scale heights. They are thanked for reading stories, for helping someone hang in there, for offering friendship and helping them see the value of friendship in others, for being wise and inspirational. Each double page has Carle’s recognisable illustrations: a pile of books and a caterpillar, an owl spreading its wings, a spider and caterpillar in the long grass, bees buzzing around honeycomb, each accompanied by a few words which show how much is owed to a teacher who has inspired.

Children will love looking for Eric Carle’s signature illustrations: a caterpillar, bees, owl, spider, butterflies and apples, reflecting the other books children will know and love from his astonishing output. And spotting the caterpillar on each page will add to the humour of the storyline.

All of the virtues presented will engender further discussion amongst older readers, as they ponder who taught them to care about their world, or encouraged their uniqueness, or supported their attempts to fly.

This is a lovely easily held, strong board book dedicated to thanking teachers who have inspired and supported, reminding people to say thank you. The apple motif runs through the book, an apt opportunity to talk about the idiom, an apple for the teacher.

Themes: Caterpillars, Eric Carle, Teachers, Acknowledgement, Humour.

Fran Knight