joelevard's review against another edition
5.0
As a kid, I was pretty much fascinated with any book that had giant, colorful pictures of food, so it only makes sense that my two favorites were Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and this, The Giant Jam Sandwich. Despite the more varied foodstuffs on display in the former, I have to give the edge to the latter, because it actually showed people making the giant food instead of just being pelted with it from above. Kids like to know the process, I guess.
So the idea here is that all these wasps have descended upon a sleepy hamlet like a biblical plague, and the best plan the townsfolk can come up with is to make a giant jam sandwich. This will attract all the wasps, who will be stuck in the jam, squished by the top piece of bread, and carted away. These people are to be praised for an environmentally friendly (though hardly cruelty-free) solution, even if it is a bit wasteful, considering the global starvation epidemic (possible metaphorical exploration for later: wasps = undesirable ethnic communities, story as gentrification parable?).
Making a giant sandwich isn't as easy as you'd think, though, and it is really a team effort: the dough-making operation fills an entire room, and later it is left to rise on flatbed trucks. An oven is constructed, the size of a warehouse. Jam is carted in dump trucks and spread over the bread with trowels. The top piece of bread is suspended in midair by helicopters, waiting for the trap to be sprung.
I probably liked this book because I liked sandwiches, so found the idea of a giant one quite appealing. Somehow, despite the presence of this image, which is really, really disgusting when you think about it:
It kind of reminds me of the time I went to Cedar Point amusement park on the one day of the year all the mayflies hatch. You could see big clouds of them roiling in the air, and sometimes while on the roller coasters, you would zoom through the swarms at 75 mph. So, keep that mouth closed. Might want to shut your eyes too.
Facebook 30 Day Book Challenge Day 21: Favorite picture book from childhood.
So the idea here is that all these wasps have descended upon a sleepy hamlet like a biblical plague, and the best plan the townsfolk can come up with is to make a giant jam sandwich. This will attract all the wasps, who will be stuck in the jam, squished by the top piece of bread, and carted away. These people are to be praised for an environmentally friendly (though hardly cruelty-free) solution, even if it is a bit wasteful, considering the global starvation epidemic (possible metaphorical exploration for later: wasps = undesirable ethnic communities, story as gentrification parable?).
Making a giant sandwich isn't as easy as you'd think, though, and it is really a team effort: the dough-making operation fills an entire room, and later it is left to rise on flatbed trucks. An oven is constructed, the size of a warehouse. Jam is carted in dump trucks and spread over the bread with trowels. The top piece of bread is suspended in midair by helicopters, waiting for the trap to be sprung.
I probably liked this book because I like
It kind of reminds me of the time I went to Cedar Point amusement park on the one day of the year all the mayflies hatch. You could see big clouds of them roiling in the air, and sometimes while on the roller coasters, you would zoom through the swarms at 75 mph. So, keep that mouth closed. Might want to shut your eyes too.
Facebook 30 Day Book Challenge Day 21: Favorite picture book from childhood.
snowelf's review against another edition
4.0
I can see why this has become a classic, it's a fun, quirky story and some of the pictures are really fascinating. A book to read again and again ...
katalina_julia's review against another edition
3.0
The names are strange, and it has interesting vocabulary for a children's book. The plot is interesting though.
laura_mcloughlin's review against another edition
5.0
A favorite of mine from childhood that Kathryn has recently re-discovered. Certainly an ingenious (but unlikely to be successful in real life) solution to a wasp problem.
katesleepyteach's review against another edition
5.0
I got this book as a kid. I absolutely love this story !
janeeyrezombiehunter's review against another edition
5.0
Another of my favorites from childhood. The scale of the sandwich is so enjoyable for children, and the effects of creating such a huge sandwich. For anyone who has been fascinated with the "world's largest" baked goods or edibles!
calistareads's review against another edition
5.0
OMG! How have I not known about this book? This is a story about giant food and it beat 'Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs' by 4 years. This book enchanted me and has been soaked in Cupids arrow juice for I fell in love with this story. It is so cute, so whimsical, and surreal.
A town is attacked by wasps, about 4 million. The story is told in verse, love it. The town has a meeting and the baker comes up with the answer. They will use bread and strawberry jam to trap them. You should see them making this bread. It's amazing. Also at the town meeting, I swear the people in the town are drawn to look like famous people. That dude from a 70's show who was the building handyman is there and Carol Channing, Vera from the show 'Alice'. Someone looks that Rhea Perlman to me and maybe Carol Burnett or Lucille Ball, not sure which. It's page 12. I used to watch 70s show reruns as a kid after school. Some others look familiar and I don't know their names. It's only this picture they look famous. In the other frames, they just look like people.
I want to own this it's so fun and it's one of my new kid favorite books too. I read it to the kids and they loved it too. It's not just me. They loved the big bread cooking. They gave it a resounding 5 stars with room to grow and the nephew needed to have it read again. You should read this 70's darling.
A town is attacked by wasps, about 4 million. The story is told in verse, love it. The town has a meeting and the baker comes up with the answer. They will use bread and strawberry jam to trap them. You should see them making this bread. It's amazing. Also at the town meeting, I swear the people in the town are drawn to look like famous people. That dude from a 70's show who was the building handyman is there and Carol Channing, Vera from the show 'Alice'. Someone looks that Rhea Perlman to me and maybe Carol Burnett or Lucille Ball, not sure which. It's page 12. I used to watch 70s show reruns as a kid after school. Some others look familiar and I don't know their names. It's only this picture they look famous. In the other frames, they just look like people.
I want to own this it's so fun and it's one of my new kid favorite books too. I read it to the kids and they loved it too. It's not just me. They loved the big bread cooking. They gave it a resounding 5 stars with room to grow and the nephew needed to have it read again. You should read this 70's darling.