Houdini: The Amazing Caterpillar by Janet Pedersen, 2008 first edition.

$22.00

Written and illustrated by Janet Pedersen. First edition, 2008. Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Company.

"You will do amazing and magical things, Houdini," whispered Houdini's mother when he was just a tiny egg, nestled upon a bright green leaf."

Houdini entertained a classroom of children until he had competition from a turtle, a flowering plant, and a spider. Then, he went into his unique magic act, transforming from an egg to a caterpillar to a chrysalis and then...a monarch butterfly. "Ta-da!" Beautiful!

Kirkus Reviews wrote of Janet Pedersen's illustrations: "His climactic conversion engulfs the page, his wings the dominant feature in a prominent double-page spread. Mixed-media illustrations brilliantly emphasize Houdini’s dark, bushy eyebrows and wide-eyed expressions through abrupt lines; the small caterpillar fills each page with tremendous energy until his glorious transformation."

An Author's Note at the end of the book describes the process of becoming a monarch butterfly. A delightful and beautiful teaching tool for young readers. Great inspiration for a science project!

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Condition: Near Fine/Good. The dust jacket front is slightly ruffled, as shown in the photo. There are no dampstains or other signs of moisture. The paper and unique color printing treatments may have reacted to heat. There's a small wrinkle in the top right corner of the front flyleaf else book is in fine condition.

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