Diary of a Wombat

A story about looking at things from different points of view.

Author: Jackie French Illustrator: Bruce Whatley Pages: 32 Publisher: Clarion Books Published Date: 11/24/2003 Genre: Fiction - Picture Book HC Price: $14 Publisher's Recommended Reading Level: 3-7 Read Aloud: 3+ Read Alone: 6+

Common Sense Note

This is a story about looking at things from different points of view and the humorous situations that can arise as a result.

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Marigny Dupuy

The humor in the entertaining story is deadpan and comes from the wombat's unshakeable adherence to its own point of view, reminiscent in many ways of the unflappable Amelia Bedelia. The design of the book is handsome, with richly colored acrylic images set against a sharp white background.

From the Book
I'm a wombat. I live in Australia. As you can see from my picture, I look a little like a bear, but smaller. I live in a hole in the ground. I come out mostly at night, and during the day I sleep. I eat grass and roots and, of course, the occasional treat ...

Plot Summary:

Told as a week of entries in a wombat's diary, the early part of the week features entries such as this:
"Monday
Morning: Slept.
Afternoon: Slept.
Evening: Ate grass.
Scratched.
Night: Ate grass. Slept"

Then new neighbors (human) move in and disturb the wombat's routine, but their arrival affords her many new opportunities as well. She "helps" the new people, for example, by defeating the flat hairy doormat, and removing all of the wet, flappy things hanging on the clothesline. For each act of kindness, she demands a reward: at first just carrots, then oats, and eventually carrots and oats. The people are accommodating and the wombat concludes at the end of the week that, "humans are easily trained and make quite good pets."