THE GREEDY WORM

Kindness can beget kindness.

When a worm’s meal is interrupted by a large “THUMP!” above its head, the worm’s subsequent discovery of a large apple elicits fantasies of a delicious apple pie. But this tasty fantasy is interrupted by the arrival of other equally eager bugs looking to partake in the feast. Imagining having to share the pie with the others, the titular greedy worm does what greedy worms do…and eats the entire apple in a gluttonous frenzy. Full of apple-y goodness, the worm resembles a sphere, making it difficult to run and hide when a hungry bird suddenly appears. Instead of letting the greedy worm become the second course, the shortchanged bugs hold back the bird and frighten it off, giving the worm time to consider its poor manners. Using seeds from the apple’s core, the worm sets out to grow an apple tree so that all the bugs will have more than enough food to share in the future. It’s a fun (almost) wordless story that relies on its graphically bold, doodlelike illustrations to put as much energy and emotions into the bugs as possible. Caregivers and educators will love having emerging readers relay the story to them, and the message is one that readers of all ages will be happy to hear again and again. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A winsome tale sure to worm its way into readers’ hearts.