It would be easy to make such a story clever for the sake of being clever, but instead Ellis has created one of the smartest, most original and most endearing picture books of this year.

As in a traditional wordless title, the sequential images have to be examined closely so that we can create our own version of the story. To me it was one of those texts that was fun to read, more like a theatrical performance done by a parent. I had it translated in my head, but I hadn’t written it down,” Ellis said, “so when Liz asked, ‘Does this actually mean anything?Their miniature world is alluringly well-realized and includes an invented language, which young readers delight in decoding. A book thta continues to develop with rereads - you are encouraged to decode the language that on first glance looks like gobbledeegook. Written entirely in the playful and amusing language of bugs, it isn't necessary to speak fluent moth or ladybug to enjoy the growth and metamorphoses creatively combined through Carson Ellis's delightful words and fanciful illustrations as the seasons subtly transform. And, honestly, if you think about it, picture books are full of words their audience doesn’t understand at first.

Most children in the audience are familiar with the book, have a favourite character and know some of the lingo. I don’t speak Chinese so these bugs really do seem to be speaking a language I truly don’t understand. It’s a genuinely charming story with brain-tickling interest from the dialogue, and it earns a satisfying edge from the silent and decisive victory over the spider. There’s a touch of magical realism to Ellis’s story; the cricket plays a violin, damsel flies build a tree house, the ladybird likes to relax in a deckchair and read a book (in her own language we assume. The illustrations are wonderful and each spread offers plenty of details about life in the bugs' world - a twig is not a twig, a toadstool grows, insects serenade one another under a moonlit sky - the circle of life continues.This really is an ingenious book which, through its visual literacy, stimulates the spoken and written word effortlessly and with a great deal of fun.

Polly Crosby tells ReadingZone about her novel, This Tale is Forbidden (Scholastic), a fractured fairy tale set in a dystopian world. Ellis's ( Home ) bewitching creation stars a lively company of insects who speak a language unrelated to English, and working out what they are saying is one of the story's delights. In her follow-up to the internationally acclaimed Home, Carson Ellis invites readers to imagine the dramatic possibilities to be found in a garden, where insects talk their own mysterious language.

Ross Welford introduces Time Travelling with a Tortoise, the sequel to Time Travelling with a Hamster, and a whole new time travel adventure! In her follow-up to the internationally acclaimed Home , Carson Ellis invites readers to imagine the dramatic possibilities to be found in the natural world .

Sentence construction is different in other languages and it’s really important that the gibberish phrases scan because that’s part of how a reader figures out what the bugs are saying, and working out what they are saying is part of the fun. Carson Ellis has created a fantastic microcosm with her usual grace and inventiveness…I was completely captivated by Ellis’s wonderful creatures, their charming little world and their droll language. I was completely captivated by Ellis's wonderful creatures, their charming little world and their droll language.A discerning eye and ear are prerequisites for decoding this elegantly esoteric concoction, and they are outcomes, too. Editors who pitch picture books at international fairs are accustomed to having to explain the text to foreign publishers in a language they both understand, but for Candlewick’s Liz Bicknell, selling the rights to Carson Ellis’s Caldecott Honor book Du Iz Tak? The performers (at this show Annie Brooks and Katherine Morton) wear matching dungarees and top-knots, engaging the kids whilst they settle with an easy and charming rapport. The creator of Home turns a droll eye to the natural world, with gorgeous art and a playful invented language.