The cranky caterpillar - Richard Graham

Longlisted for the Klaus Flugge Prize 2018

One day Ezra hears a gloomy blue tune coming from the piano. To her surprise, it's a caterpillar making the sound: a cranky caterpillar. Ezra tries to cheer him up with some fresh air, cakes, and new hats, but nothing seems to work..What can Ezra do to help the cranky caterpillar change his tune?


Richard Graham is a new illustrator with a highly distinctive and original style. The origins of 'The Cranky Caterpillar' lie in his own artistic sculptural creations: a caterpillar created from the hammers inside an old piano, a band of musical characters, all sculpted from instruments and materials found in his studio. Graham has also been inspired by Wassily Kandinsky's colour synesthesia, whereby we are shown the magical colours of music, in this splendidly illustrated book. Children will identify with the struggle the caterpillar goes through, in trying to articulate his emotions, and will delight in the inventive band of friends that succeed in cheering him up.
'absolutely astonishing . . . an astounding piece of work' Raymond Briggs, creator of The Snowman