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Mr. Men #2
Mr. Greedy
Get ready for the second invasion of Little Miss and Little Mr. Men! That's right - those zany, pint-sized characters are back. Easy enough for young readers and witty enough for adults! Mr. Greedy Wants to eat everything in sight. How will he ever stick to a low-calorie diet?
36 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1971
11 people are currently reading
552 people want to read
About the author
Roger Hargreaves
1,331 books368 followersRoger Hargreaves was a British cartoonist, illustrator and writer of children's books. He created the Mr. Men series, Little Miss series and Timbuctoo series, intended for young readers. The simple and humorous stories, with bold, brightly coloured illustrations, have sales of more than 85 million copies worldwide in 20 languages.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews
September 7, 2021
In fairness to Mr. Greedy he'd decided to go for a walk after breakfast to build up an appetite for lunch, so he was mindful of he's weight.
The only problem is that his eyes are bigger than he's belly and that got him into a whole load of trouble!
Another wonderfully memorable character in Hargreaves Mr. Men series.
The only problem is that his eyes are bigger than he's belly and that got him into a whole load of trouble!
Another wonderfully memorable character in Hargreaves Mr. Men series.
January 12, 2025
Roger Hargreaves criou a série “Senhores” no início dos anos 70 e eu cresci com este imaginário icónico, sendo o Senhor Comilão talvez uma das imagens de marca desta colecção, que a Editorial Presença repescou em 2012, a tempo de os partilhar com as crianças da minha vida.
O Sr. Comilão não só gosta de comer, como vive numa casa rechonchuda e sonha com comida. Deixo a sua ementa de pequeno-almoço, que parece a minha quando estou num hotel.
TORRADAS – 2 fatias
FLOCOS DE CEREAIS – 1 pacote
LEITE – 1 garrafa
AÇÚCAR – 1 taça
TORRADAS- 3 fatias
OVOS – 3, cozidos
TORRADAS – 4 fatias
MANTEIGA – 1 manteigueira
DOCE DE LARANJA – 1 frasco
O Sr. Comilão não só gosta de comer, como vive numa casa rechonchuda e sonha com comida. Deixo a sua ementa de pequeno-almoço, que parece a minha quando estou num hotel.
TORRADAS – 2 fatias
FLOCOS DE CEREAIS – 1 pacote
LEITE – 1 garrafa
AÇÚCAR – 1 taça
TORRADAS- 3 fatias
OVOS – 3, cozidos
TORRADAS – 4 fatias
MANTEIGA – 1 manteigueira
DOCE DE LARANJA – 1 frasco
May 17, 2018
Mr. Greedy is a strange and unusual story. Mr. Greedy somehow ends up in a magic castle of a giant. The giant catches Mr. Greedy and says “greedy by name and greedy by nature.” He forces Mr. Greedy to eat a huge meal - which is pretty much a much as Mr. Greedy weighs. Then Mr. Greedy learns his lesson and stops eating so much and loses weight. This is fat shaming and there has been a lot of it in the past. We know now that there are other reasons people can’t control their weight.
This almost feels like a little mean spirited to me. I enjoy Mr. Men, but this is not my favorite and it seems more harsh than Roger usually goes in for. I guess one out of 30 you don’t care for is pretty good odds.
I didn’t think the message in this one was all that great for modern children, so I didn’t share this with the kids. I probably should, but I have some friends I’m loyal to and this story would hurt their feelings. So not passing this message along.
This almost feels like a little mean spirited to me. I enjoy Mr. Men, but this is not my favorite and it seems more harsh than Roger usually goes in for. I guess one out of 30 you don’t care for is pretty good odds.
I didn’t think the message in this one was all that great for modern children, so I didn’t share this with the kids. I probably should, but I have some friends I’m loyal to and this story would hurt their feelings. So not passing this message along.
June 13, 2021
Even as a kid I thought this was a weird one. It’s like a bizarre retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk where the giant wins. Still, it has all of the Mr. Men charm, for all its oddness. I’m not sure how well its ‘if you don’t stop overeating I’m going to force feed you until you physically can’t eat any more to teach you a lesson’ message would go down with today’s dieticians and parents, though…
My next book: Europe - A Prophecy
My next book: Europe - A Prophecy
January 21, 2013
After the complex deconstructed take on the criminal mind of Mr. Tickle, author Roger Hargreaves returns to more familiar territories in children's literature with the second in his Mr. Men series.
Mr. Greedy is an allegorical tale tackling a low-level vice - one of the all too familiar seven deadly sins.
Mr. Greedy is initially a difficult character to comprehend. He's quite clearly obese, yet undistressed at the unhealthy and frankly, quite dangerous state of his body. He dreams of food, he attacks his meals with relish and seems to derive an enormous amount of pleasure from the act of consumption. Yet it's clear this is not comfort eating. Mr. Greedy is clearly not an unhappy individual - it's tempting to assume that our hero is suffering Prada Willi Syndrome or some other medically recognised genetic disorder. More likely, in this reviewer's opinion, is that Mr. Greedy is a former elite sportsman. His diet is heavily skewed toward carbohydrates such as breads and cereals - foods that an endurance athlete might favour. It is not uncommon for distinguished cyclists and long-distance runners to bloat in retirement - finding it relatively easy to stop training, but much more difficult to alter the eating habits that their career has led them to. Indeed, after eating an enormous breakfast, Greedy steps out to take a walk in order to build an appetite for his lunch – this is not the behaviour of the classic glutton.
Despite the lack of clarity to the back story, what is clear is that, despite his apparent happiness, Mr. Greedy's lifestyle is to be frowned upon - at first it appears to be a typical, disappointing one-dimensional allegory. But Hargreaves can't be that obvious can he?
After an entertaining breakfast and during his mid-morning constitutional, Mr. Greedy appears to slip into either a dreamlike daze or some kind of food-induced hallucinatory state. In an incredible scene Greedy happens upon a secret room filled with over-sized foodstuffs such as oranges bigger than himself and peas the size of footballs. Now Greedy is faced with a test - his vice could consume him. Can he resist his urges and beat his demons?
It's a cautionary tale, typical of stories aimed at young children, yet Hargreaves subverts the form by misinterpreting the moral of the tale. It's a delightful and suitable kicker, of which Hargreaves is an undoubted master.
That this is only book two in a series of fifty, should serve to fill any reader with a wild anticipation and appetite for the other unexpected delights that Roger Hargreaves may have yet to serve.
Mr. Greedy is an allegorical tale tackling a low-level vice - one of the all too familiar seven deadly sins.
Mr. Greedy is initially a difficult character to comprehend. He's quite clearly obese, yet undistressed at the unhealthy and frankly, quite dangerous state of his body. He dreams of food, he attacks his meals with relish and seems to derive an enormous amount of pleasure from the act of consumption. Yet it's clear this is not comfort eating. Mr. Greedy is clearly not an unhappy individual - it's tempting to assume that our hero is suffering Prada Willi Syndrome or some other medically recognised genetic disorder. More likely, in this reviewer's opinion, is that Mr. Greedy is a former elite sportsman. His diet is heavily skewed toward carbohydrates such as breads and cereals - foods that an endurance athlete might favour. It is not uncommon for distinguished cyclists and long-distance runners to bloat in retirement - finding it relatively easy to stop training, but much more difficult to alter the eating habits that their career has led them to. Indeed, after eating an enormous breakfast, Greedy steps out to take a walk in order to build an appetite for his lunch – this is not the behaviour of the classic glutton.
Despite the lack of clarity to the back story, what is clear is that, despite his apparent happiness, Mr. Greedy's lifestyle is to be frowned upon - at first it appears to be a typical, disappointing one-dimensional allegory. But Hargreaves can't be that obvious can he?
After an entertaining breakfast and during his mid-morning constitutional, Mr. Greedy appears to slip into either a dreamlike daze or some kind of food-induced hallucinatory state. In an incredible scene Greedy happens upon a secret room filled with over-sized foodstuffs such as oranges bigger than himself and peas the size of footballs. Now Greedy is faced with a test - his vice could consume him. Can he resist his urges and beat his demons?
It's a cautionary tale, typical of stories aimed at young children, yet Hargreaves subverts the form by misinterpreting the moral of the tale. It's a delightful and suitable kicker, of which Hargreaves is an undoubted master.
That this is only book two in a series of fifty, should serve to fill any reader with a wild anticipation and appetite for the other unexpected delights that Roger Hargreaves may have yet to serve.
April 13, 2017
My 6 year old niece loved this story because it teaches you not to be greedy and that made her feel happy.
April 23, 2023
4.5 stars
Mr. Greedy tells the story of a Mr. Men character that is obsessed with eating and is more gluttonous than he is miserly with money. He then comes across a cave and is placed in a situation where he must change his ways. I admired the way that this story was laid out and how it incorporated Hargreaves' humor and wit. Where some of the stories see the characters make do with their attribute or place them in a situation where this attribute is a convenience, this story takes a more traditional approach where the character must change their ways. I liked the initial direction that this book took, though the concluding moral was a bit disconnected, though funny, nevertheless.
Mr. Greedy tells the story of a Mr. Men character that is obsessed with eating and is more gluttonous than he is miserly with money. He then comes across a cave and is placed in a situation where he must change his ways. I admired the way that this story was laid out and how it incorporated Hargreaves' humor and wit. Where some of the stories see the characters make do with their attribute or place them in a situation where this attribute is a convenience, this story takes a more traditional approach where the character must change their ways. I liked the initial direction that this book took, though the concluding moral was a bit disconnected, though funny, nevertheless.
November 1, 2017
Wonderful books for story time. Loved by all my family. Recommended.
December 17, 2022
This is another great little learning book. Mr greedy eats too much. But the giant made him Finish all his meal and Mr greedy just felt I'll, he never ate too much again and he looked much better for it. We especially liked the counting of how much Mr greedy was eating.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 10, 2020
I remember reading this during the 1970s when I was little and thinking it was pretty good fun. Nowadays, with the modern-day accusations of fat-shaming, I wasn't so sure I would see it the same way. It's a nice little story which moves along briskly, has a decent amount of text to read, with simple illustrations. Mr Greedy's changing of his ways after the giant 'fat shames' him could equally be applied to any kind of over-indulgence whether it be shopping, eating lots/extravagantly, idling, boozing, not so very different from A Christmas Carol, and therefore the moral of this short tale remains a worthy one: 'Everything in moderation'. 3.25/5
July 13, 2017
Greed or Gluttony
12 July 2017 – Gage Roads
I'm currently sitting on a ferry making the crossing between Perth and Rottnest Island, having just paid a ridiculous amount of money for the tickets (but considering that it is the only ferry that makes the crossing, a part of me is not surprised). The fact that they didn't bother to stock up on any teabags for the journey, and the fact that the host suffers from a bad case of verbal diaherrah, really has made the journey quite painful, though the rough seas really don't bother me much. However, the spot of water that we are currently crossing is called the 'Gage Roads', and that stood out in my mind because it is the name of a brand of beers from Western Australia.
Anyway, this isn't a review about my holiday (or the ferry operator) but about a Mr Men good called Mr Greedy. Okay, the seas have just become a little rough, so it is going to be interesting to see if I can finish this review in one piece. Anyway, Mr Greedy us about a man that likes to eat, and because he likes to eat he happens to be really round. However, one day on a walk he finds himself in a huge cave which contains some quite large food, so he decides to help himself, much to his own detriment.
It is interesting that greed seems to be connected with food, but not necessarily with wealth, yet there is this idea that greed isn't necessarily a bad thing. What Hargreaves is talking about here is not so much greed, but gluttony – which is one of the seven deadly since. Like alcohol, food isn't always necessarily a good thing and eating to much can actually be quite detrimental to one's health. I do find the pastor who condemns alcohol in all its forms but lays out a sumptuous feast to be somewhat hypocritical – in a way it is easy to condemn alcohol because of the nature of drunkenness, but food not to the same extent – we all need to eat. Yet having super-size portions in some countries seems to be expected.
Yet are greed and gluttony the same things. Well, yes and no. Okay, it isn't necessarily illegal to be greedy, nor is it illegal to be a glutton, but there is the concept of ethics. If we work of the principle of the golden rule (and not the one that says that he who has the gold, makes all the rules) then gluttony isn't necessarily a problem as the only person whom you are hurting is yourself (though this doesn't take into account family and dependants). However, when it comes to greed there is the idea of the zero sum game – for every dollar you earn, somebody else is losing – and in some sense the more money you make, or save, is more money out of somebody else's pockets. Moreso, it isn't necessarily the rich that end up losing money, though in a sense the poor never really had much to begin with.
Personally, I think greed is hiding behind legal peculiarities to justify ripping somebody off, or worming one's way out of a contract – this is why people don't like insurance companies because the general consensus is that while you are giving them money when it comes time to claim they generally don't come through with the goods. In fact, I remember speaking to a life insurance professional once and asked him what the best thing about his job was – he said denying claims – and the thing is that when they deny claims they don't see a suffering person at the end, they see a saving, and when confronted with this, their response is generally 'but the law is on our side'. In my mind it is the sign of a scoundrel to behave in an unethical manner and then hide behind the law.
No, I don't think Mr Greedy is actually greedy – he doesn't come across as a scoundrel. Okay, he does eat food that doesn't belong to him, but I still don't believe that he is a scoundrel. Instead, he is a glutton, and his tummy is proof of that. Yet, what is a shame is that these days greed isn't portrayed in the same way that it used to be portrayed, particularly in this book. In one sense the world has changed, and people are discarded in favour of ever greater profits, and companies that seek to do the right thing are punished by the market because they are spending money that is not rightfully theirs.
12 July 2017 – Gage Roads
I'm currently sitting on a ferry making the crossing between Perth and Rottnest Island, having just paid a ridiculous amount of money for the tickets (but considering that it is the only ferry that makes the crossing, a part of me is not surprised). The fact that they didn't bother to stock up on any teabags for the journey, and the fact that the host suffers from a bad case of verbal diaherrah, really has made the journey quite painful, though the rough seas really don't bother me much. However, the spot of water that we are currently crossing is called the 'Gage Roads', and that stood out in my mind because it is the name of a brand of beers from Western Australia.
Anyway, this isn't a review about my holiday (or the ferry operator) but about a Mr Men good called Mr Greedy. Okay, the seas have just become a little rough, so it is going to be interesting to see if I can finish this review in one piece. Anyway, Mr Greedy us about a man that likes to eat, and because he likes to eat he happens to be really round. However, one day on a walk he finds himself in a huge cave which contains some quite large food, so he decides to help himself, much to his own detriment.
It is interesting that greed seems to be connected with food, but not necessarily with wealth, yet there is this idea that greed isn't necessarily a bad thing. What Hargreaves is talking about here is not so much greed, but gluttony – which is one of the seven deadly since. Like alcohol, food isn't always necessarily a good thing and eating to much can actually be quite detrimental to one's health. I do find the pastor who condemns alcohol in all its forms but lays out a sumptuous feast to be somewhat hypocritical – in a way it is easy to condemn alcohol because of the nature of drunkenness, but food not to the same extent – we all need to eat. Yet having super-size portions in some countries seems to be expected.
Yet are greed and gluttony the same things. Well, yes and no. Okay, it isn't necessarily illegal to be greedy, nor is it illegal to be a glutton, but there is the concept of ethics. If we work of the principle of the golden rule (and not the one that says that he who has the gold, makes all the rules) then gluttony isn't necessarily a problem as the only person whom you are hurting is yourself (though this doesn't take into account family and dependants). However, when it comes to greed there is the idea of the zero sum game – for every dollar you earn, somebody else is losing – and in some sense the more money you make, or save, is more money out of somebody else's pockets. Moreso, it isn't necessarily the rich that end up losing money, though in a sense the poor never really had much to begin with.
Personally, I think greed is hiding behind legal peculiarities to justify ripping somebody off, or worming one's way out of a contract – this is why people don't like insurance companies because the general consensus is that while you are giving them money when it comes time to claim they generally don't come through with the goods. In fact, I remember speaking to a life insurance professional once and asked him what the best thing about his job was – he said denying claims – and the thing is that when they deny claims they don't see a suffering person at the end, they see a saving, and when confronted with this, their response is generally 'but the law is on our side'. In my mind it is the sign of a scoundrel to behave in an unethical manner and then hide behind the law.
No, I don't think Mr Greedy is actually greedy – he doesn't come across as a scoundrel. Okay, he does eat food that doesn't belong to him, but I still don't believe that he is a scoundrel. Instead, he is a glutton, and his tummy is proof of that. Yet, what is a shame is that these days greed isn't portrayed in the same way that it used to be portrayed, particularly in this book. In one sense the world has changed, and people are discarded in favour of ever greater profits, and companies that seek to do the right thing are punished by the market because they are spending money that is not rightfully theirs.
April 7, 2017
This is probably my least favorite Mr. book so far. I wish it was more about not being greedy and less about not being fat. I hate the page that shows a smaller Mr. Greedy and then says something like that suits him a lot better doesn't it. I mean I think he was fine both ways. I could see this book making kids self conscious even if they have the smallest amount of baby weight, which I don't think is okay. All in all this book could have been about not sharing or many other things, but they choose to go about it this way, and I don't think it was the right choice at all.
May 31, 2021
Est-ce que je suis la seule à être complètement indignée par ce livre??? Avec des phrases comme "plus il mangeait et plus il était gros", "il était gros et malheureux".... Un géant le fait manger jusqu'à ce qu'il se sente mal pour lui faire réaliser qu'être glouton c'est mauvais donc à la fin on voit une image de lui mince et on lit "il est mieux comme cela, non?" PARDON? Pauvres enfants qui grandissent en se faisant lire ça...
September 28, 2015
Ah, Mr Men and Little Miss, how wonderful you are!
These books made up so much of my childhood. No matter what I would go ahead and pick one up. I worked my way through them all a couple of times. Each one has a wonderful story for the child to engage with, each character being fun to read.
Everyone has a bias for their favourite character, yet every book is delightful.
These books made up so much of my childhood. No matter what I would go ahead and pick one up. I worked my way through them all a couple of times. Each one has a wonderful story for the child to engage with, each character being fun to read.
Everyone has a bias for their favourite character, yet every book is delightful.
August 25, 2013
I get quite peckish when ever I read this.
December 6, 2014
Never turn down a pot noodle
July 31, 2017
Every story has a lesson. Apparently this one is "Beware of Giants!"
May 17, 2022
Tedious moralism and fat-shaming. I guess I should have expected it.
Read
April 17, 2023No stars. This one was so bad I stopped reading it aloud. Content warning: ED. It’s only “example” of Mr. Greedy’s “greed” was his eating habits and included a menu. Ugh! What?! Then there’s a Bruce Bogtrotter -style punishment dealt out for the perceived overeating and Mr. G learns some sort of fucked up lesson about greed? I don’t know, man. Hated it.
Anyway, this concludes my romp down Roger Hargreaves’ boxed set of “Little Misters” and despite the sacrilege of splitting up the set, I think I’ll donate most of these and keep only a few. This last one really sucked and I don’t want to own it.
Anyway, this concludes my romp down Roger Hargreaves’ boxed set of “Little Misters” and despite the sacrilege of splitting up the set, I think I’ll donate most of these and keep only a few. This last one really sucked and I don’t want to own it.
February 11, 2023
So, this is a classic of children’s literature with vibrant, colourful pictures and an easy to grasp moral. It’s a shame that the moral comes across as pretty problematic to the modern ear.
I’d probably avoid this one in future, and stick to Roger Hargreaves’s John Mouse books, which have aged far more gracefully than all the Mr Men books I’ve read in the 2020s.
I’d probably avoid this one in future, and stick to Roger Hargreaves’s John Mouse books, which have aged far more gracefully than all the Mr Men books I’ve read in the 2020s.
January 22, 2019
This book is plagiarised; MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY HAS BEEN STOLEN.
January 9, 2025
O meu pai lia me este livro com uma edição de quando ele era criança. Adorava a história, ele fazia as vozes dos personagens 🥹
January 29, 2019
Απ'τα καλύτερα βιβλιαράκια της σειράς!Τα παιδάκια το βρίσκουν αστείο.
December 30, 2021
Reading challenge = ✅
July 10, 2025
Mr Greedy walks into a giants house and sees his dinner on the table and thinks ‘yum that’s for me’??? Although I don’t know if the correct response from the giant is to fat shame him into losing weight (spoiler alert: he is a proper skinny legend by the end, more like Mr Ozempic)
May 10, 2018
not an accurate representation of myself.
August 22, 2023
A story of how a meeting with a giant, can inspire anyone to lose weight.
January 13, 2020
Exciting use of language evokes the very constrained era of the time, with amazing character development that really increases one's empathy with the main character. The denouement is exciting and well crafted together. The symbolism inherent in the entire text created personifications of biblical sins, so may be a bit deep for some readers.
March 24, 2023
It fat shames pretty hard
September 12, 2016
5.
Summary - Mr. Greedy is the second book in the series of Mr Men books, and is about a pink blob of a character who, true to his name, is very greedy. In the book, he is greedy mostly in terms of food. He wakes up one day, eats an enormous breakfast, and decides to go on a walk to build up an appetite for lunch. On his walk, he stumbles upon a cave that he had never seen before and decides to explore. Inside, he follows the delicious smell of food, which he then devours, until he is met by a giant! The giant scolds him for being greedy, and teaches him a lesson on why it is wrong.
Theme - True to the name of the book, the theme of the story is about what can go wrong when you are greedy.
Personal Response - I was introduced to the Mr Men (and Little Miss) series when I was in 4th grade visiting extended family in Scotland. Immediately, I thought these books were cute and entertaining. Even now I can appreciate both the originality and simplicity of these books, and I still find them entertaining to read.
Recommendation - When recommending these books to parents of children in elementary school, I would make sure to mention to take them with a grain of salt. This book in particular specifically references someone who is too greedy with food, which leads him to be fat. When he eats less, he is no longer fat. There is potential for children with body image issues to interpret this book as greedy being the same thing as being "fat", which is not true. However, so long as parents and their children can take these books for what they are meant to be - humorous stories of characters with a single exaggerated feature - I think they are very entertaining reads for children.
Summary - Mr. Greedy is the second book in the series of Mr Men books, and is about a pink blob of a character who, true to his name, is very greedy. In the book, he is greedy mostly in terms of food. He wakes up one day, eats an enormous breakfast, and decides to go on a walk to build up an appetite for lunch. On his walk, he stumbles upon a cave that he had never seen before and decides to explore. Inside, he follows the delicious smell of food, which he then devours, until he is met by a giant! The giant scolds him for being greedy, and teaches him a lesson on why it is wrong.
Theme - True to the name of the book, the theme of the story is about what can go wrong when you are greedy.
Personal Response - I was introduced to the Mr Men (and Little Miss) series when I was in 4th grade visiting extended family in Scotland. Immediately, I thought these books were cute and entertaining. Even now I can appreciate both the originality and simplicity of these books, and I still find them entertaining to read.
Recommendation - When recommending these books to parents of children in elementary school, I would make sure to mention to take them with a grain of salt. This book in particular specifically references someone who is too greedy with food, which leads him to be fat. When he eats less, he is no longer fat. There is potential for children with body image issues to interpret this book as greedy being the same thing as being "fat", which is not true. However, so long as parents and their children can take these books for what they are meant to be - humorous stories of characters with a single exaggerated feature - I think they are very entertaining reads for children.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews