Hicks, Betty. The Worm Whisperer.

Hicks, Betty.  The Worm Whisperer.  Macmillan/ Roaring Brook Press      2013  185p $16.99 ISBN 978-1-59643-490-5  elem  Realistic Fiction VG-BNe     

Ellis loves animals.  He fancies himself an animal whisperer.  The ducks come to him, and when he finds a wooly worm caterpillar, it seems to respond to him.  Ellis decides to enter his worm in the Annual Wooly Worm Race in town, where contestants race wooly worm caterpillars up a string.  The $1,000 prize money would allow his father to have much needed back surgery that the family can’t afford.  Along the way Ellis learns that he can be the class clown, and he basks in the attention. Several humorous mishaps occur, but with the help of friends and family there is a happy conclusion.

Ellis, his friends and his family members are well drawn, even if they are a bit stereotypical.  There is growth and learning on the part of Ellis, the protagonist.  This is a gentle, satisfying story that may attract boys.

Wooly worms                                                       --Joan Theal