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I love how The Hermit Crab by Carter Goodrich begins.  And its beginning will give you a really good flavor for just how this story will unfold:

The hermit crab in this story didn’t set out to be a hero.  And he wasn’t particularly brave.  He was, actually, very shy.  Whenever all his neighbors would get together, the hermit crab was happy to linger just out of sight.  If anyone did happen to notice him, he would become terrible nervous and start to fidget.  And then, if they should happen to say something like “Hi” or “How’s it going?” he would disappear into his shell without saying a word.

Or at least how you think it will unfold.  I assumed that the hermit crab would be confronted with a situation in which he had to act very brave.  This act of bravery would bring him out of his shell (quite literally), he’d make wonderful new friends who loved that he was a hero.

But what really happens is that the very shy hermit crab was minding his own business when he happens upon a broken superhero figure buried in the sand.  He thinks this will  make a great new home, so he moves in.  Meanwhile, all the other fish and sea life are in a dire situation.  A trap had one of the fish – well – trapped and they were all too scared to help.  The hermit crab still minding his own business stumbles upon the scene and not knowing that anything fishy (ha – a pun!) was going on accidentally untrapped the fish.

When the other fish begin to celebrate he retreats further into his new home and then later abandons it when nobody is looking.  The attention is just too much.

The book ends

The next day, the hermit crab made his way back to town.  There, still perched on top of the highest rock, was the fancy new shell, empty as the day he’d found it.  But nobody in the crowd noticed.  They were happy to cheer their new hero, while the lobster made speech after speech.

So the hermit crab settled in, just beyond the edge of the crowd, right where he was  most comfortable.

He smiled to himself, and he even cheered the fancy new shell.  But he cheered very softly.

And just a little bit.

He didn’t want to be noticed.

The type of book that makes me smile.  The accidental hero.  My boys love the inclusion of a superhero figure.  I loved the muted greens and blues.  The hermit crab was a very likable character.  The smile on his face when he moves into the superhero figure is priceless.

Links of interest:  More book blogger reviews.
Genre:  Fiction picture book.  Approx ages 4-8.
Publisher:   Simon & Schuster.  June 2, 2009
Hardcover, 40 pages. ISBN 1416938923
Source copy: Review copy sent from publisher fro 2009 Cybils nomination for which I was a panelist.
The Hermit Crab is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.

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