The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast

I had a copy of this book when I was a child, I had it memorized by the time I was 7 years old and the incredible, detailed, colorful plates stayed with me and sparked my imagination for years to come. I lost my copy somewhere along the way and did finally find a replacement, which I am pleased to share with my son - it is the perfect book to introduce children to the concept of poetry and to allow them to hear the rhythms of language.

This book made an enormous impression on me as a child. The pictures are magical, beautiful, and incredibly detailed. I often spent hours gazing longingly at the illustrations and dreaming I was a part of them, wading through frog's waterlogged house, drinking ale with the newts, playing cricket with the snails and butterflies, keeping out of the way of the hornet and the wasp, and generally living it up at the feast and the ball. The final picture of the sleepy insects going home by the light of the friendly firefly always gave me good dreams if I looked at it right before bedtime! What I'm trying to say is that the picturs and accompanying verses in this book awoke a rich level of magic and imagination in me. I almost hate to think how I would have turned out without having been exposed to The Butterfly Ball in my formative years!Now that my family is expanding I realised that it is time for me to pass this wonderful book on to the children and spread the magic. Alas I can't find it anywhere!!! I find it tragic that such a beautiful work of art is not available to today's children. Please oh please will whoever has the power of decision over the future of this book kindly return it to the bookshelves where it belongs?

I had this book as a child, along with the record. The illustrations were fresh in my mind after 20+ years. It is a joy to share with young readers.

I first encountered this book as an LP some 25 years ago; I enjoyed the LP and decided to find the book. The book is illustrated with wonderful color drawings of the creatures with human attributes. The book is well written, and it has an appendix that describes each of the real animals in the story. The one character in the story that stands out in my memory is Arena, the spider, she likes to sit in from of the mirror and admire her eyes; I had never though of a spider as being conceited and this struck me as funny. The story line of the book is about a grand celebration that the forest creatures are having. It starts with the Herald going around to announce the great event; it proceeds through the day describing the preparations each of the creatures goes through to get ready for the ball, the journey to the ball, the ball and the feast, and the trip back home by the light of fireflies. This is a wonderful children's book.

My mother purchased a copy of this book in Brussels, Belgium some time ago. As a child I grew to love it. The pictures are exquisite and the matching poerty very well written. The book introduces the reader to various insects and woodland creatures preparing themselves for the upcoming Butterfly Ball. Each character is unique and some of their stories are quite enthralling. Some pages even have hidden surprises. It is best for older children and adults, however; there is too much reading for younger children. Buy this book if for nothing else but the pictures! It is sure to be a family treasure.