The Very Impatient Caterpillar (review #2), written by Ross Burach, reviewed by Klaudia Janek

Student Reviewer: Patrick S.
Summary: A very impatient caterpillar notices his friend is doing something he has never seen before. The friend tells the impatient caterpillar that he is about to undergo metamorphosis. The impatient caterpillar asks for clarification on what that is. The Friend then goes on to explain the general process of metamorphosis. The impatient caterpillar, obviously, wants to undergo metamorphosis as fast as he can, because he is impatient. He constantly asks his friend questions on what to do and how to do it. When the impatient caterpillar finally forms his cocoon, he starts the process of waiting, impatiently, for him to transform into a butterfly. During this half of the story the impatient caterpillar repeats the classic line “are we there yet?”, except that it is “am I a butterfly yet?”. The next few pages are a sort of montage of the caterpillar trying to pass the time; however, the impatient caterpillar is very restless and so he breaks out of his cocoon before he is a butterfly. He tries to fly, but he falls onto the ground. Due to this failure, he crawls back into the cocoon to continue metamorphosis. During these ‘montage’ scenes, the caterpillar is shown practicing patience or relaxation exercises so he can get a grip on himself. He finally manages to stay patient and transform into a butterfly. When he comes out of his cocoon he tells his friend that he is now a patient butterfly.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The book’s message is that being impatient does not get you anywhere faster than if you took it slow. The caterpillar bothered his friend by asking so many questions, yet he ended up at the same spot as the other caterpillars. The caterpillar learned his lesson in the middle of the book when the caterpillar impatiently gets out of the cocoon before he is ready. He sees that he needs to wait for the process to happen, he can’t rush it. By reading the book to children, the teacher can expand upon this lesson and explain to the children how beneficial patience can be. Readers will also learn scientific vocabulary. This would be a good read-aloud before a science lesson on metamorphosis.