The Woolly Bear Caterpillar

A woolly bear caterpillar in search of dandelion leaves discovers a sycamore caterpillar singing loudly at the start of this fable: “With my hair of bright gold,/ I’m a sight to behold,/ The queen of the sycamore tree.” The yellow and orange new acquaintance imagines her future beauty as a moth (“I’ll be absolutely gorgeous when I get my wings”) and sniffs at the monotone woolly bear’s prospects (“Never mind, we can’t all be beautiful”). Two more creatures—a dark blue vapourer caterpillar with red spots and bright yellow tufts, and a puss moth caterpillar with red marks “that made it look as if he was screaming”—exhibit similar confidence and patronize the woolly bear in the same way. Nature-focused spreads by Zommer (The Lights That Dance in the Night) fizz with his signature organic forms in delicate colors. Donaldson (The Gruffalo) sets up expectations for the woolly bear’s moth form to be overshadowed by those of her gaudy associates, but the ending goes a different way in this ugly-duckling tale. Repeating storytelling elements give pleasant rhythm to the woolly bear’s encounters, which take reassuringly predictable, even cyclical form. Ages 3–7. (Feb.)