135. Fish and Worm

Fish and Worm. (I Can Read Comics, Level 1) Sergio Ruzzier. 2023. [May] 48 pages. [Source: Library] [Early Reader]

First sentence: It was lunchtime, but Fish didn't want to eat. 

Premise/plot: Fish doesn't want to his his dinner, a worm on a hook. Fish is pressured several pages. Eat the worm. Eat the worm. Eat the worm. He doesn't eat the worm. Instead, he plays with the worm and befriends it. Out of the blue, it's okay that Fish didn't eat the worm. Now it's fine to eat cake and to share that cake with Worm. 

My thoughts: This was a strange early reader. I do enjoy stories of unlikely friendships. But this one was truly odd. Like worms are used as bait to catch fish...so that humans can eat fish. You would think fish parents would be like WHATEVER YOU DO, don't eat a worm if you see a worm on a hook. Better safe than sorry, stay away from worms. This makes it seem like the fish parent(s) are not only are encouraging him to eat the worm, but had something to do with the worm being there and on the hook. I am definitely over-thinking this one. (I do that. The simpler the text, the more likely I am to overthink it.) Speaking of overthinking it, it would be a very WET and messy cake submerged in the water as it is. (The whole book, of course, is underwater.)

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers