Caterpillar Who Went On A Diet And Other Stories

by Ranjit Lal

A hilarious glimpse of the complex lives of insects These fourteen scintillating stories are marked by Ranjit Lal's usual combination of meticulous research, rollicking storytelling and fascinating characters. Nimbu, the caterpillar, resolves to go on a diet inspired by the stick insect. Cheeni Chor, the ant, discovers a refrigerator stuffed with goodies and is driven to rebellion. Ladoo Gulabjamun, one of the resident cockroaches of the famous Golden Thali Restaurant, decides to take on the management to impress his ladylove. You will also meet the body-building cricket, the dung beetles who like to party and a host of other insects who reveal their inner lives as never before and are true to both the insect and human world. Lal's mastery of the world of birds and beasts, as captured in Crow Chronicles and The Life and Times of Altu Faltu, also extends to the world of insects, and this is perhaps his most enchanting and comical book to date. Rahul Dutta's unusual and striking illustrations capture the magic of worlds Lal reveals.

193 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[GenevieveAudrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a humorous and entertaining book! The stories of the different insects in their worlds were really amusing and I enjoyed each story tremendously. The bugs and the tales were reminiscent of humans and their experiences but written in such a relevant manner to the insect world. The caterpillar of the title story suffering though a dangerous diet because of peer pressure. The beautiful moth's obsession to win a beauty contest at great risk to her life. The cockroach's revenge against a chef who tried to kill him. All such amusing tales with little twists in each story that made that made them quite exciting. This was a well crafted book, easy to understand and definitely a pleasing read.

[Kavya Vihurkar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book ive ever read
5/5
must read
How the f did the author make me relate to bugs?

[Illyria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, hilarious fables starring crafty, spunky, resourceful and witty caterpillars, cockroaches, dragonflies, dungbeetles, and other assorted insects. The dialogs are breezy, the description clear and concise, and while the plots are refreshingly simple, there are enough twists like the use of performance-enhancing drug in grasshopper olympics and a disabled dragonfly captain who saves the day, to keep the book from becoming an ultrasweet, gulabjamun-like fare that children above ten will make face at. Well-researched and informative, the book will make you see insects in a different light.

[Siddhartha]

delightful stories of insects, caterpillars written in an imaginative way.