Wiggly the Worm

Meh. My brain says give this one star, but I'll award two just to make up for the fact I'm a major buzzkill recently and suspect I'm being too harsh.

Cute in concept yet questionable in execution, this anthology of children's stories feels like a bunch of tales made up by a parent who's been asked for a bedtime story on the spot. Often, the logic and language used feel beyond childhood comprehension and the book itself only contains a few clipart-style pictures - one at the beginning of each story, showing only a single character per image with no relevant scenery etc. I also question some of the plotlines chosen, because they don't exactly feel suitable for young kids.

There will be ‘spoilers' in some of the individual reviews here, untagged, because I don't exactly believe a children's book can be spoiled.

Wiggly Worm and the Garden Town

This one is kind of dull and presents a moral of being able to accomplish your dreams “with a little hard work and determination.” Sure, I guess, if you're lucky and/or privileged enough and actually have the required talent. (Don't mind me; I have personal bitterness around the farcical nature of this particular, overused moral.) It features a crafting project at the end which encourages children to mimic the characters by using items destined for the trash to create a model ‘garden town.' But it's written in a manner which addresses children directly, leaving me all the more confused by the target audience.

Snarky Snail's Story

Eh... a little bit much for children, in my opinion. It's about a snail who lashes out when his grandfather dies. He immediately has the self-awareness to understand why he's being mean to his friends and apologizes in a very hamfisted, moralistic manner. I don't think children are going to understand nuanced psychological ideas such as the rage stage of grief, much less what it means when a character explains why they were upset and adds “but it's not an excuse” to the statement. That said, however, I can see where this may be incredibly (and unfortunately) relevant to a lot of families. I'd suggest only they use this story, and avoid sending children who needn't think of such things to bed pondering dead relatives.

Rattles Snake Saves the Day

I don't even know how to articulate my thoughts. As an adult who understands fiction vs. reality, I find it charming. But I'd hesitate to share this with a young child, since it involves a human family discovering a rattle snake in the garden, discussing “getting rid of it,” then actually hunting the snake down while he hides in fear for his life. Ultimately, as the title suggests, the rattle snake ‘saves the day'... by miraculously rescuing a two-year-old who falls into a wading pool and nearly drowns. He does this by wrapping around her leg and dragging her out. Pretty sure that's more a constrictor thing than a viper thing, but okay.

Munchy Mosquito's Last Bite

This one reads an awful lot like an allegory to addiction, which would be useful and interesting if not for how poorly handled and saccharine it is. A mosquito feels a little bad about hurting people to drink their blood, but justifies it by claiming the discomfort is only brief. Her friends gather to guilt her over it, pointing out the itching lasts for several days, and she decides to give up drinking blood even though it'll be very difficult. It's alright for a bedtime story, I guess, but honestly a bit ridiculous. The craft which follows is interesting, though, encouraging kids to make bugs from foam. It sounds like something I'd have done as a kid!

Mac Apple's Lucky Day

It's about an apple who wants to be turned into food because an apple's point in life is to be eaten. He cries, and the tears are apple juice. Then he falls, and meets the garden critters who become his friends... and then they eat him because he reveals it's all an apple wants from life. I'm just... flabbergasted. Absolutely flabbergasted. It includes an apple pie recipe afterward, which feels weirdly morbid, but does at least make sure to say children need to seek adult assistance.

Overall

That's it, and I'm out of things to say. I know I personally won't be sharing these with any kids I know, because the ones old enough to actually understand them would be bored by the writing style. I'm unimpressed.