Ants in Your Pants, Worms in Your Plants! (Gilbert Goes Green) by Diane deGroat (HarperCollins, 2011)
While this book is written simply enough for beginning readers to follow on their own, the layered plot and humor make it one both readers and listeners will want to return to again and again. From the first page, we’re on Gilbert’s side as he tries to come up with a subject for a poem about spring. It seems to him that everybody is more successful, though the thought balloons that appear throughout tell a different story. A student who seems earnest, for example, has his mind on the clock.
As Gilbert wiggles, the teacher asks, “Do you have ants in your pants?” and these ants appear again throughout the book as Gilbert worries about ants on a picnic, and ultimately they lead him to an idea right before his eyes, and he’s able to write a pretty terrific poem. Along the way we also learn about how to help clean up the earth, as Gilbert has to come up with not only some creative writing, but an Earth Day project, too. We fret with him, say “Eewww” with his friends considering other projects, and finally enjoy a hard-earned cheer.
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Diane deGroat was at The Carle on Sunday for a BookTalk interview and autographed copies of her books for the store. Pick up a signed copy of Ants in Your Pants, Worms in Your Plants! (Gilbert Goes Green) or other autographed titles illustrated by Diane, including the bestselling Charlie the Ranch Dog by Ree Drummond, while they last!
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