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The Diggers
Verses describe the holes that a mole, dog, worm, and rabbit dig, but none can compare with the work of a man and his steam shovel
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1960
2 people are currently reading
129 people want to read
About the author
Margaret Wise Brown
393 books1,209 followersMargaret Wise Brown wrote hundreds of books and stories during her life, but she is best known for Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny. Even though she died nearly 70 years ago, her books still sell very well.
Margaret loved animals. Most of her books have animals as characters in the story. She liked to write books that had a rhythm to them. Sometimes she would put a hard word into the story or poem. She thought this made children think harder when they are reading.
She wrote all the time. There are many scraps of paper where she quickly wrote down a story idea or a poem. She said she dreamed stories and then had to write them down in the morning before she forgot them.
She tried to write the way children wanted to hear a story, which often isn't the same way an adult would tell a story. She also taught illustrators to draw the way a child saw things. One time she gave two puppies to someone who was going to draw a book with that kind of dog. The illustrator painted many pictures one day and then fell asleep. When he woke up, the papers he painted on were bare. The puppies had licked all the paint off the paper.
Margaret died after surgery for a bursting appendix while in France. She had many friends who still miss her. They say she was a creative genius who made a room come to life with her excitement. Margaret saw herself as something else - a writer of songs and nonsense.
Margaret loved animals. Most of her books have animals as characters in the story. She liked to write books that had a rhythm to them. Sometimes she would put a hard word into the story or poem. She thought this made children think harder when they are reading.
She wrote all the time. There are many scraps of paper where she quickly wrote down a story idea or a poem. She said she dreamed stories and then had to write them down in the morning before she forgot them.
She tried to write the way children wanted to hear a story, which often isn't the same way an adult would tell a story. She also taught illustrators to draw the way a child saw things. One time she gave two puppies to someone who was going to draw a book with that kind of dog. The illustrator painted many pictures one day and then fell asleep. When he woke up, the papers he painted on were bare. The puppies had licked all the paint off the paper.
Margaret died after surgery for a bursting appendix while in France. She had many friends who still miss her. They say she was a creative genius who made a room come to life with her excitement. Margaret saw herself as something else - a writer of songs and nonsense.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
October 14, 2008
My son loves trucks, trains, diggers, you name it. And yes, he likes this book, which is important, but the book seems to be two different stories; like, "oh, this first half isn't long enough, so I'm going to add another part which kind of fits, but is a different style, but whatever, I'm the author of 'Goodnight Moon' so I can get away with it."
I can't wait to return it to the library.
I can't wait to return it to the library.
August 29, 2019
The beloved author of GOODNIGHT MOON, Margaret Wise Brown, is still able to keep kids reading years after her death when a trunk of her manuscripts was found by author Amy Gary.
Animals like moles and dogs and worms like to dig in the dirt. People like to dig as well, but sometimes you need a machine to do the digging. Kids can see how a digger machine digs a tunnel under the ground and through a mountain for a train.
The story is very simple. There is the repetitive text of “dig, dig, dig” on several pages which is good for early readers. In the beginning, there seems to be a rhyming scheme and then when the story moves to humans and machines, the rhymes disappear. The rhymes return again at the very end of the book. I like the paths of the digging on the pages. Young children can trace the path with their fingers while having the story read to them. The illustrations of the train’s path under a city give parents a way to explain how subways work if they live in a city.
Kids that like machine books will likely enjoy this book. But, I think parents will notice the disconnected story and the two styles that jump back and forth. Not the best of Margaret Wise Brown in my opinion.
Animals like moles and dogs and worms like to dig in the dirt. People like to dig as well, but sometimes you need a machine to do the digging. Kids can see how a digger machine digs a tunnel under the ground and through a mountain for a train.
The story is very simple. There is the repetitive text of “dig, dig, dig” on several pages which is good for early readers. In the beginning, there seems to be a rhyming scheme and then when the story moves to humans and machines, the rhymes disappear. The rhymes return again at the very end of the book. I like the paths of the digging on the pages. Young children can trace the path with their fingers while having the story read to them. The illustrations of the train’s path under a city give parents a way to explain how subways work if they live in a city.
Kids that like machine books will likely enjoy this book. But, I think parents will notice the disconnected story and the two styles that jump back and forth. Not the best of Margaret Wise Brown in my opinion.
April 23, 2019
Having raised five children of my own, two of which were boys that loved to dig, I can thoroughly appreciate this diverse book about all sorts of diggers. Wee little creatures and mid-size critters dig, boys and men that dig, shovels and machines that are used for digging. Lots of diggers. It is an opportunity for the child to learn how extensive digging really is in our world.
The illustrations are excellent and sure to garner lots of interest and present "talking points" for the parent of the inquisitive child. Love this book!
I received a complimentary copy to facilitate this review. Opinions are mine alone and are freely given.
The illustrations are excellent and sure to garner lots of interest and present "talking points" for the parent of the inquisitive child. Love this book!
I received a complimentary copy to facilitate this review. Opinions are mine alone and are freely given.
July 1, 2025
Charming, as all MWB books are, but nowhere near her collabs w/ Clement Hurd. Read w/ niece.
May 25, 2023
A “man” builds a digger all by himself- not a single other person or women helped according to this book.
February 9, 2023
1.5/5
This picture book started off ok, but the rhyme and rhythm of the text changed partway and meandered. Also, not sure what the point of this story is (or if there is even a story or point to this book...).
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Part of a personal challenge to read all of my boyfriend's and his sister's childhood books before we donate and give them away.
*** #26 of my 2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge - A book with a misleading title ***
This picture book started off ok, but the rhyme and rhythm of the text changed partway and meandered. Also, not sure what the point of this story is (or if there is even a story or point to this book...).
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Part of a personal challenge to read all of my boyfriend's and his sister's childhood books before we donate and give them away.
*** #26 of my 2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge - A book with a misleading title ***
August 30, 2015
The kiddo loves this. Animals and people and construction equipment digging holes in dirt--what's not to love? ;-) it feels a little disjointed to me when we switch to the train but then you've got a train in the book on top of all the other awesomeness so, I can't complain.
January 30, 2018
What the fuck! The text seems like it should be a nice rhythm, and it's not. It seems like two different books were slapped together. This is terrible! I resent that it exists!
July 15, 2019
Heikonlaista riimittelyä ja muutenkin tylsä kirja.
February 29, 2024
2.5 stars? A strange one indeed, which is reflected in the divided reviews. A posthumous publication, the two editions have slightly different editing and wildly different presentations.
The Kirk edition opens on a small scale, bugs and beasties digging holes, illustrated in oils so flat and cartoony that they feel like digital art. And then the scale expands: a man, power tools, a train, a tunnel, the world opening, the scale growing wondrous and disruptive and strange, with increasingly dynamic and busy art to match. Whole pages are unique to this edition, the digger violent, destructive in the act of creation, "Its great arms lifted, paused, and swung the world it had dug up and put it somewhere else in the world." I don't know that I like the complete work; one half probably appeals to each kind of audience, and the combination is unmooring - productively, I think, but not enjoyably.
The Corbineau edition is more frenetic but also more consistent: vibrant, flat art admixes text and illustration, typography chasing the digging under the ground and through mountains while anthropomorphized diggers (both animal and machine) unify and sweeten the narrative. The ending is slightly different; I appreciate dropping the "hole to China" line in favor of a more Brownian repetition of "And the smoke trailed back, and back, and back."
Looks like Clement Hurd also did a version but, y'all, I can only delve so deep (read: the library I'm using doesn't have that version).
I feel like this was drafted as one of the books meant to earmark certain sections on a library shelf: boy's books, construction books, still MWB but a vibe that isn't going to grab me the way a different theme would. Given that, I at least appreciate the Kirk edition for its willingness to get weird - the growing sense of wonder is interesting, and I'll pick interesting any day.
The Kirk edition opens on a small scale, bugs and beasties digging holes, illustrated in oils so flat and cartoony that they feel like digital art. And then the scale expands: a man, power tools, a train, a tunnel, the world opening, the scale growing wondrous and disruptive and strange, with increasingly dynamic and busy art to match. Whole pages are unique to this edition, the digger violent, destructive in the act of creation, "Its great arms lifted, paused, and swung the world it had dug up and put it somewhere else in the world." I don't know that I like the complete work; one half probably appeals to each kind of audience, and the combination is unmooring - productively, I think, but not enjoyably.
The Corbineau edition is more frenetic but also more consistent: vibrant, flat art admixes text and illustration, typography chasing the digging under the ground and through mountains while anthropomorphized diggers (both animal and machine) unify and sweeten the narrative. The ending is slightly different; I appreciate dropping the "hole to China" line in favor of a more Brownian repetition of "And the smoke trailed back, and back, and back."
Looks like Clement Hurd also did a version but, y'all, I can only delve so deep (read: the library I'm using doesn't have that version).
I feel like this was drafted as one of the books meant to earmark certain sections on a library shelf: boy's books, construction books, still MWB but a vibe that isn't going to grab me the way a different theme would. Given that, I at least appreciate the Kirk edition for its willingness to get weird - the growing sense of wonder is interesting, and I'll pick interesting any day.
June 29, 2019
We received a free physical copy of this picture book from the publisher to facilitate a review. All thoughts and opinions are our own.
This fun book shows and tells us all about digging, from worms and rabbits digging their homes and dens to big machinery that digs holes through mountains for roads and train tracks.
This is probably the perfect book for little diggers and lovers of creepy crawlies and big machines, but my pretty pink princess-obsessed daughter enjoyed it.
The illustrations are really fun and colorful, with lots of different textures and patterns, as well as paths, roads, tracks, and more for roaming eyes and hands to follow while reading!
My only disappointment was that with all the different types of diggers and digging involved in this picture book, there was no one digging in any gardens. That would have been much more relatable for my daughter and me, but we enjoyed it all the same!
This review and more like it can be found at Lazy Day Literature
This fun book shows and tells us all about digging, from worms and rabbits digging their homes and dens to big machinery that digs holes through mountains for roads and train tracks.
This is probably the perfect book for little diggers and lovers of creepy crawlies and big machines, but my pretty pink princess-obsessed daughter enjoyed it.
The illustrations are really fun and colorful, with lots of different textures and patterns, as well as paths, roads, tracks, and more for roaming eyes and hands to follow while reading!
My only disappointment was that with all the different types of diggers and digging involved in this picture book, there was no one digging in any gardens. That would have been much more relatable for my daughter and me, but we enjoyed it all the same!
This review and more like it can be found at Lazy Day Literature
November 24, 2020
I never thought I'd take the time to write a negative review about a children's book, but here we are. It started out well enough, with a nicely paced rhyming scheme and what I thought would be a cumulative structure, like The House That Jack Built. But once the adult digger got involved, the rhyming disappeared and the innocent digging evolved into a more violent intrusion ("breaking up dinosaur bones and garden gnomes") that will inevitably intrude into the peaceful bucolic environs of the city's rural neighbors (oh how blissfully unaware the farmers are as they wave at the train that just burst out of the newly dug tunnel). I definitely stumbled in parts reading it aloud and my daughter clearly lost interest in it toward the end. Still we plodded on, willing to finish what we started, much like the railway facing down the mountain (and the continent of Asia???) it would eventually cut into. I give it two stars because, like so many other children's books, the illustrations are engaging.
July 6, 2019
Who is doing all the digging and most importantly why are they digging? Moles dig because they like to and dogs dig to bury their bones. Worms, rabbits and mice dig to get home. Pirates dig to hide stolen treasures. One man digs with a shovel and discovers he needs something bigger to help him dig a bigger hole. What do you think he needs it for?
In this delightful story readers will discover lots of things found under the ground. Simple sentence structure and colorful illustrations with plenty of hidden recognizable items will keep beginner readers engaged. Parents, teachers and caregivers can use this book as a tool to teach kids all about animals that dig and why they dig.
In this delightful story readers will discover lots of things found under the ground. Simple sentence structure and colorful illustrations with plenty of hidden recognizable items will keep beginner readers engaged. Parents, teachers and caregivers can use this book as a tool to teach kids all about animals that dig and why they dig.
December 20, 2017
The Diggers by Margaret Wise Brown
Audio book but I can just image the pictures.
Children's book about the holes the diggers leave.
One hole is done by a mole, a dog, a worm, rabbit, a pirate, and a man.
There's another made by a machine that a man runs. Talks about where the hole started and where it went through and ended up.
Cute story, love this author's works.
Received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
Audio book but I can just image the pictures.
Children's book about the holes the diggers leave.
One hole is done by a mole, a dog, a worm, rabbit, a pirate, and a man.
There's another made by a machine that a man runs. Talks about where the hole started and where it went through and ended up.
Cute story, love this author's works.
Received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
November 29, 2017
All little boys love to dig, some little girls too. This book is certainly for them. It talks about all the things that dig in the ground and as well as a special machine which digs and digs. Funny little story.
June 28, 2019
I love how the text is inserted right into the drawings. The wormhole winds its way down and the lettering is placed right into the tunnel.
For the full review: https://twobookwormsblog.wordpress.co...
For the full review: https://twobookwormsblog.wordpress.co...
September 3, 2017
This book is nice for the child who enjoys construction equipment and has a subtle message that everyone has an important job to do and a place in the world but even that message is hard to get to.
September 19, 2018
A man goes digging with his shovel, and then the digger helps out, too. What are they digging for?
January 15, 2019
I kinda like this one.
February 26, 2019
There does seem to have two different stories going on but the imagery done connects the everything. The version I read is illustrated by Antoine Corbineau.
March 31, 2019
A simple story about everyone who digs, from a mole to a human with construction equipment. The basic text becomes engaging when paired with the colorful, more complex illustrations. 24 pages
April 10, 2019
One of my littles' new favorite books. Here's my complete review: http://agoodreid.blogspot.com/2019/04...
June 21, 2019
3.5 stars
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August 17, 2019Yikes. Not my favourite MWB book.
May 9, 2020
Read at a construction-themed family story time at my house on 7/26/19: https://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com...
October 5, 2022
Lots of animals digging bigger things, including people building train tunnel. Simple book, Stella liked it, ours had a different cover.
July 18, 2023
Cute, I like her other stuff better but this is a cute one to read with youngins who like transportation vehicles.
July 8, 2024
Lovely illustrations.
July 27, 2024
Meh. It started great then got lame.
December 22, 2022
Easy and fun to read out loud. If your child loves digging equipment, this is a perfect little story for them.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews