Happy Birthday to the Very Hungry Caterpillar
Happy Birthday to the Very Hungry Caterpillar
The children's classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a staggering 50 years old this year. Written and illustrated by Eric Carle in 1969, it does of course feature a caterpillar who eats his way through lots of foods before turning into a beautiful butterfly.
The bright and colourful illustrations are appealing to young children, whilst parents love to be able to help their children learn to count to five, learn to recognise and name different foods and learn the names of the days of the week as they read through the books. The message for children of eating healthy food to grow strong and avoid gorging on junk food to avoid feeling poorly is hugely important too!
The lovely ending where he turns into a beautiful butterfly is not just a fun conclusion to the story but also educational in teaching children about the different stages of life for the caterpillar.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar was a firm favourite in our house when my children were little and my boys liked to read with me, naming the different fruits, counting them with me and saying the different days and we would all spread our arms wide at the last page when he turned into the butterfly.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar board book is one of our best selling books here in our Didsbury shop and to complement the book we also have a lovely range Very Hungry Caterpillar toys which are suitable for babies and toddlers. Produced by Rainbow Designs, who are renowned for their range of high quality, value for money licenced toys for babies and toddlers, the Very Hungry Caterpillar Toys remain true to Eric Carle's instantly recognisable illustrations and images.
For babies who like a story on the go we have a buggy book version of the Hungry Caterpillar book which features pictures from the book with their names and colours.
One of our best sellers in our Didsbury shop is The Very Hungry Caterpillar Teether and Rattle which is a soft toy caterpillar which has a pleasing jingly rattle and which includes a plastic teether to give teething babies something to chew on. At £8.99 it makes a perfect new baby gift or baby shower gift.
Also ideal for new babies is the Very Hungry Caterpillar Activity Spiral, perfect to wind around a car seat or buggy handle or a cot, the activity spiral features a mirror, a plastic strawberry shaped teether and a crinkly butterfly.
Another lovely toy for babies and also toddlers to play with is the Wooden Caterpillar Twisting and Grasping Toy. This beautifully made wooden toy is 18cm long and is designed for babies aged 12 months upwards. Each wooden segment is joined by elastic. Baby can pull and twist the segments to change the shape and direction of The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Older babies and toddlers can have fun with our Hungry Caterpillar Pull Along toy. Made from wood with a sturdy cord handle to pull him along, this pull along can be the perfect companion for exploring with. Ideal as a first birthday or Christmas gift. Combine with the board book for a wonderful gift for the special toddler in your life.
To view our range of Very Hungry Caterpillar books and toys click here. You can buy online - postage to UK mainland addresses is just £2.50 or if you're lucky enough to live near our Manchester shop then we'd love to see you - we're Manchester's only independent toy specialist and we're located in Didsbury, just 2 minutes from the Didsbury Village tram stop.
As we love the story of the Very Hungry Caterpillar so much we're celebrating his half centenary birthday with a colourful window display plus we're running a competition in our Didsbury shop giving customers the chance to win a selection of Very Hungry Caterpillar goodies.
Entry is free of charge, pop on down to our shop which is in Didsbury, Manchester, or, if you're not local to Manchester you can enter online here:
The competition will run til the end of June and is open to UK residents we're also offering 10% off any Very Hungry Caterpillar toys and books - quote this blog if you visit our shop or use code VHC50 at our online checkout to claim your discount.