Review of "Wiggly Squiggly," by Jeanne Willis

 Review of

Wiggly Squiggly, by Jeanne Willis ISBN 0763567434

Five out of five stars

Different perspective on the spider in the house

The narrator is the grandchild of a man that was once an intrepid mountaineer. One day the grandfather sets out on a solitary mission to climb a very difficult mountain. Unknown to him, there is a valley on the other side of the peak that is the home of a family of monsters. There is the father, mother and children, all comfortable in their dwelling and extremely large.

 When the grandfather enters their valley, he is mistaken for a spider-like creature with his rope and ability to dangle on it. The children react the way human children often do where there is the sudden appearance of a spider. Fortunately, their cries of “Smash it!” are not acted on. Eventually, the grandfather manages to parachute back down off the mountain, when he does the monsters consider him a butterfly and let him go.

 This book is an unusual expression of the sudden appearance of a bug-like creature that is considered frightful. In this case it is the human that fills the role of the bug and the monsters the role of the human.