The Bug Cemetery ANNOTATION
Neighborhood children imaginatively stage funerals for dead bugs, but they experience real sadness following the death of a pet.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
"When I found a dead ladybug one day, my sister, Wilma, buried it for me. She painted a rock to use as a tombstone."
It doesn't take much to start a bug cemetery-a dead ladybug or inchworm, a pitcher of lemonade, and a few tears for a show of proper respect. But when a beloved pet suddenly dies, funerals are no longer any fun. A bug is one thing, but how do you mourn a special friend?
With warmth and sensitivity, this subtle picture book explores the difficult emotions associated with losing a loved one.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
Children's fascination with and fear of death gets a funny and ultimately empathic treatment from first-time author Hill. The matter-of-fact text, as narrated by a boy, shares the tone of Margaret Wise Brown's The Dead Bird: "When I found a dead ladybug one day, my sister, Wilma, buried it for me. She painted a rock to use as a tombstone." Mock funerals for insects then become the new neighborhood fad: "Wilma started charging a dime to bury someone's dead bug. Billy opened a lemonade stand for thirsty mourners.... Soon we had a bug cemetery in our backyard." But when a car kills Billy's cat, Buster, the children confront a sobering reality, and the precocious irony that has crept into the boy's narration vanishes, replaced by a heartfelt plainspokenness: "Funerals aren't any fun when they're for someone you love." The children transform the bug cemetery into a garden and final resting place for Buster, and find comfort in the ongoing cycle of life. Rosenberry (When Vera Was Sick) varies her gouache illustrations between single-page and double-spread formats to give the book a compelling visual pace. The children's elfin facial features and the masque-like compositions take on a slightly gothic appearance, appropriate to the play-acting and, eventually, the sorrow. The artist captures the psychological subtleties of a tricky subject, and every page feels real whether Wilma and her friends are feigning grief or genuinely experiencing it. Ages 4-7. (Apr.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Children's Literature - Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz
Dead bugs seem to deserve burial, with tombstone. Soon the neighborhood kids are holding funerals, with flowers, mourners and a refreshment stand in the garden. But when Buster, Billy's cat, is killed by a car, the funeral becomes a more serious matter. They bury him in the bug cemetery because Billy liked to chase bugs, but find that "funerals aren't any fun when they're for someone you love." They plant a special garden around Buster's grave where butterflies can gather and Billy's new kitten can chase them. Rosenberry's thinly applied gouache paintings, including the vines and bugs on the endpapers, emphasize the lush greens of willows and lawns as well as the multitude of blooms in the garden. The characters are naturalistic in this touching story, which introduces death and funerals without being too serious or depressing. 2002, Henry Holt,
School Library Journal
PreS-Gr 1-When a boy finds a dead ladybug, he and his sister Wilma bury it and hold a pretend funeral. Billy, the boy next door, joins in by bringing over a dead fly. Soon, neighborhood children want to take part in the ritual and bring various bugs for burial, creating a cemetery. Wilma charges 10 cents for funerals and Billy opens a lemonade stand, transforming what was imaginative play into a business. However, when Billy's cat is hit by a car and dies, the funeral is real and sad. The cat is buried among the bugs and the children plant a memorial butterfly garden around his grave. Hill approaches the subject of the death of a pet in a very gentle manner suitable for young children. At the same time she portrays the ingenuity, resourcefulness, and resilience of youngsters. Rosenberry's illustrations incorporate children of different ethnic backgrounds and are bright and summery, conveying hopefulness in spite of sadness. The story ends with Buster the Second chasing butterflies in the garden.-Be Astengo, Alachua County Library, Gainesville, FL Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
Bug funerals are one thing, but when a family pet has to be buried, the children in this tale learn to take pleasure in those still living as they experience their first loss of a loved one. When the narratorﾽa little ragamuffin, as are so many of Rosenberry's childrenﾽfinds a dead ladybug, he and his sister, Wilma, decide to give it proper funeral. Well, the headstone is real enough, if the gnashing teeth and wailing are more Hollywood. Actually, it's kind of fun, and before you know it, a host of neighborhood kids have joined in, becoming professional mourners for the resident bug population. Then one of the boys loses his cat, Buster, to the wheels of a passing car. The children bury the cat along with all their bugs, though this funeral has real tears instead of the crocodile variety. The kids quickly learn the difference between playing at grief and the genuine article, and shortly thereafter, their cemetery is converted into a garden, wherein Buster II is soon cavorting and the children find solace in his antics. Newcomer Hill never tries to soft-pedal the burn of death, but she goes a long way toward giving young readers a sense of balance in celebrating life while the Grim Reaper goes about his work. (Picture book. 4-7)
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