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The Giant Jam Sandwich
In this funny and zany picture book, villagers make a giant jam sandwich to trap the wasps that have invaded their town. It's a dark day for Itching Down. Four million wasps have just descended on the town, and the pests are relentless! What can be done? Bap the Baker has a crazy idea that just might work. Young readers will love this lyrical, rhyming text as they watch the industrious citizens of Itching Down knead, bake, and slather the biggest wasp trap there ever was! Don't miss this classic funny read-aloud picture book!
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1972
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 234 reviews
September 6, 2018
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.
June 29, 2011
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.
March 22, 2020
What a funny verse story about a giant jam sandwich that is made and used because of an invaded by wasps. Nice 70 ties like drawings and good imagination for the story.
This book is in the 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up challenge I am doing.
This book is in the 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up challenge I am doing.
September 19, 2012
One hot summer, the poor villagers of Itching down are bombarded with wasps. Three million to be precise. These pesky stingers wreak havoc in the town, until something has to be done….. It is decided that a giant jam sandwich be constructed, to lure and trap the naughty nuisances in. This, however proves to be no mean feat. The villagers must all take part at various stages to pull the plan off successfully. Mayor Muddlenut gathers suggestions, Baker Bap orders the making of the bread, Farmer Seed allows his field to be used for the trap. After a colossal effort, the sandwich traps the wasps – kersplat – and at last, that was that! The joyful villagers celebrate with a wasp-free party. And what of the wasps? Only three little pests got themselves unstuck, and buzzed far away, not to push their good luck!
My mother dug out my old and well-worn copy of this book from her loft 2 years ago, to read to my daughter. It has set a precedent now, that it must be read every day of our visit home, and about three times in a row, followed always by "again". My daughter is completely obsessed with it, and re-ignites the passion I too had for the book as a child. The idea that the villagers can make and bake a huge loaf of bread, slice it and turn it into a giant jam sandwich to come down on the wasps - kersplat - is hilarious to children. It seems to incorporate so many of the things they love, making messy splodges and splodge-like sounds while telling the story, the silly-ness of it and the wasps getting their comeuppance in the end! This is a fabulous rhyming story, which I would recommend for children 3-7, and am not embarrassed to say I now know by heart!
My mother dug out my old and well-worn copy of this book from her loft 2 years ago, to read to my daughter. It has set a precedent now, that it must be read every day of our visit home, and about three times in a row, followed always by "again". My daughter is completely obsessed with it, and re-ignites the passion I too had for the book as a child. The idea that the villagers can make and bake a huge loaf of bread, slice it and turn it into a giant jam sandwich to come down on the wasps - kersplat - is hilarious to children. It seems to incorporate so many of the things they love, making messy splodges and splodge-like sounds while telling the story, the silly-ness of it and the wasps getting their comeuppance in the end! This is a fabulous rhyming story, which I would recommend for children 3-7, and am not embarrassed to say I now know by heart!
July 6, 2017
Another childhood classic that sticks with you even long after you have read this book. Children who are learning to read will enjoy this book and watching the means to making such big food for such a witty trap.
The illustrations were intriguing mostly in their own right since the people presented were given in such weird facial shapes that it was easy to follow along with the different members of the town. And the wasps? They were fun to track all over the page, especially where they seem to be sitting in on the meeting to catch them although it didn't do them so good.
This book can be truly enjoyed with a nice jelly sandwich just not over the pages please or if you are still into baking maybe reading to your child before going into the kitchen to duplicate the results of baking a loaf of bread then smearing it with jelly and butter. Yum!
The illustrations were intriguing mostly in their own right since the people presented were given in such weird facial shapes that it was easy to follow along with the different members of the town. And the wasps? They were fun to track all over the page, especially where they seem to be sitting in on the meeting to catch them although it didn't do them so good.
This book can be truly enjoyed with a nice jelly sandwich just not over the pages please or if you are still into baking maybe reading to your child before going into the kitchen to duplicate the results of baking a loaf of bread then smearing it with jelly and butter. Yum!
August 5, 2013
Welcome to Itching Down.
take a journey to a flustered town.
The citizens have a problem:
little wasps swarm everywhere.
So the people decide to build a sandwich
that will rid these bugs from their hair.
The loaf of bread is huge.
The jam is sticky and sweet.
The insects saw a banquet
and landed on it with their feet.
And splat!
Three survived and took off for who-knows-where,
but the people no longer care.
So welcome to Itching Down.
A now very happy town.
take a journey to a flustered town.
The citizens have a problem:
little wasps swarm everywhere.
So the people decide to build a sandwich
that will rid these bugs from their hair.
The loaf of bread is huge.
The jam is sticky and sweet.
The insects saw a banquet
and landed on it with their feet.
And splat!
Three survived and took off for who-knows-where,
but the people no longer care.
So welcome to Itching Down.
A now very happy town.
September 7, 2016
The town of Itching Down has a problem. It's been invaded by wasps. After a community meeting, it's decided the ONLY logical way to handle this is to make a giant jam sandwich to trap the wasps. Strangely, I have not tried this at our house (though wasps love to build nests on our front porch), but the book is extremely funny, especially the various characters and the creative problem-solving the town has to use to make their project a reality. Fans of British humor should pick this one up.
October 3, 2015
The Giant Jam Sandwich by John Vernon Lord
The town of Itching Down has been swarmed in by four million wasps. They cause havoc and cause misery to the villagers. However, Bap the baker comes up with a wacky idea, of constructing a jam sandwich to lure and trap the naughty nuisances in. But this can only be done with the help of all the villagers to create the biggest jam sandwich, which they all agree to. Bap the baker orders the making of the bread and Farmer Seed allows his field to be used as the trap. All their hard effort is paid off when the sandwich traps the pesky wasps. The villagers celebrate their success and Itching Down finally becomes a wasp free town again.
This book is an entertaining read with detailed illustrations, extensive vocabulary and rhyming couplets, useful for upper KS1 and lower KS2 children, who will appreciate the colourful images, rhythmic pattern and creative narrative.
Children can read this for guided reading and answer comprehensive questions on how the villagers felt, what the rhyming words were and what ingredients were used to make the sandwich. Lower KS2 pupils could also write a poem about food or even write a sequel to the book and upper KS1 pupils could draw their own sandwich or write a song about the jam sandwich.
The town of Itching Down has been swarmed in by four million wasps. They cause havoc and cause misery to the villagers. However, Bap the baker comes up with a wacky idea, of constructing a jam sandwich to lure and trap the naughty nuisances in. But this can only be done with the help of all the villagers to create the biggest jam sandwich, which they all agree to. Bap the baker orders the making of the bread and Farmer Seed allows his field to be used as the trap. All their hard effort is paid off when the sandwich traps the pesky wasps. The villagers celebrate their success and Itching Down finally becomes a wasp free town again.
This book is an entertaining read with detailed illustrations, extensive vocabulary and rhyming couplets, useful for upper KS1 and lower KS2 children, who will appreciate the colourful images, rhythmic pattern and creative narrative.
Children can read this for guided reading and answer comprehensive questions on how the villagers felt, what the rhyming words were and what ingredients were used to make the sandwich. Lower KS2 pupils could also write a poem about food or even write a sequel to the book and upper KS1 pupils could draw their own sandwich or write a song about the jam sandwich.
August 4, 2007
This is seriously one of the best books ever. I read it while I was visiting the Museum of Play with Rup in Rochester, and the title caught my eye. It is FANTASTIC. It's a picture book that tells the story of a bunch of townspeople who have a problem with something like four million wasps, and one brilliant person has the idea of producing a giant jam sandwich to trap all the wasps. Could there possibly be a better idea for a book???? I don't think so. Winner.
February 26, 2011
this was one of my favorite books as a child. I loved looking at the detailed illustrations and finding all of the villagers at work and play. An AWESOME children's book!!!
May 19, 2017
I completely by accident found this book at the library & was so excited! I loved this book as a child! And I'm happy to report that I still do 😊
March 6, 2022
Got to re-visit this throwback from my childhood on my last trip to Utah, and read it to my nephew Griffin. A delight.
February 27, 2023
We loved it! AND Theo kept calling the wasps bees and when I went to explain the difference he said “more book mama”
February 25, 2025
love a kid’s book with a plot. one of my favorites from when I was little and hopefully it’ll be a fav for Eliza!
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December 21, 2023No thoughts, head empty.
January 12, 2022
The Giant Jam Sandwich by John Vernon Lord- story and pictures, Illustrations Janet Burroway (verses)- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- The Book narrates the story a village named Itching down which is attacked by a swarm of three million wasps. The wasps wreak havoc in the town. Mayor Muddlenut calls for suggestions during a gathering of citizens. One Baker named Bap informs that the wasps are fond of jam. In order to lure and trap the wasps, it is decided that a giant jam sandwich be baked. For this purpose, work is done in steps with the help of citizens and Baker Bap. First, collect floor for bread and take it to a farm on the hill. Then, burn 50 burners to bake the bread by adding necessary ingredients. The Bread is cut in two pieces. Jam is laid on one piece of bread. Citizens wait for the wasps. The smell of jam attracts the wasps. They fall on the large jam loaded bread. The Second piece of bread is loaded on the first piece of bread. Thus, killing all the wasps, leaving just three alive. The joyful villagers celebrate with a wasp-free party. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book. The pictures and verses help the reader to relate to the story. Message- there is always a solution to a problem. We must try and resolve the issue.
January 29, 2019
First sentence: One hot summer in Itching Down, Four million wasps flew into town.
Premise/plot: I would NOT want to be in Itching Down when FOUR MILLION wasps flew into town. I wouldn't want to be there for even ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND wasps. Would you? This classic picture book is told in rhyme. Though the situation is far from ideal, the text is DELIGHTFUL.
My thoughts: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this one. It is so much fun. I love the rhythm and rhyme of it. From cover to cover it just works. Not all books written in rhyme do work. Some seem to struggle a bit here and there. This one is practically perfect in every way.
Quotes:
A truck drew up and dumped out butter,
And they spread it out with a flap and a flutter.
Spoons and spades! Slap and slam!
And they did the same with the strawberry jam.
Suddenly the sky was humming!
All four million wasps were coming!
They smelled that jam, they dived and struck!
And they ate so much that they all got stuck.
Original audience born circa 1968 to 1970.
Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10
Premise/plot: I would NOT want to be in Itching Down when FOUR MILLION wasps flew into town. I wouldn't want to be there for even ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND wasps. Would you? This classic picture book is told in rhyme. Though the situation is far from ideal, the text is DELIGHTFUL.
My thoughts: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this one. It is so much fun. I love the rhythm and rhyme of it. From cover to cover it just works. Not all books written in rhyme do work. Some seem to struggle a bit here and there. This one is practically perfect in every way.
Quotes:
A truck drew up and dumped out butter,
And they spread it out with a flap and a flutter.
Spoons and spades! Slap and slam!
And they did the same with the strawberry jam.
Suddenly the sky was humming!
All four million wasps were coming!
They smelled that jam, they dived and struck!
And they ate so much that they all got stuck.
Original audience born circa 1968 to 1970.
Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10
November 9, 2009
There's not much to say that hasn't been said. A zillion and a half wasps invade the town of Itching Downs (really, with a name like that, what do you expect? So it's not a waspish sort of town, the wopsies clearly think it is!), and, having apparently depleted the options of "evacuate" and "wait for the first killing frost" and "use up our hoarded stores of illegal DDT" the townspeople decide to get rid of the wasps with - get this - a GIANT JAM SANDWICH. (You didn't see that one coming, did you?) Most people would have made many many regular jam sandwiches and have been done in half the time, but no, these people think big.
They bake a HUGE loaf of bread, use up a HUGE jar of jelly, and SLAM the wasps in between two slices. No more wasps. No more problems. (Well, I guess the wasps figure there's a problem, but this isn't there book, now is it?)
Love the rhymes. Not too thrilled with the artwork, but I can overlook it.
They bake a HUGE loaf of bread, use up a HUGE jar of jelly, and SLAM the wasps in between two slices. No more wasps. No more problems. (Well, I guess the wasps figure there's a problem, but this isn't there book, now is it?)
Love the rhymes. Not too thrilled with the artwork, but I can overlook it.
August 5, 2011
If I had to choose on of my favorite books growing up, this one would be in the top 5. I remember pulling it off the shelf and noticing the edges were a little worn and the spine was a little loose. This is a great story about all the people pulling together to make a GIANT jam sandwich to trap the nasty wasps that were terrorizing them. They could not fix the problem one man alone but together, they were able to bake a huge loaf of bread. Together they were able to churn a massive amount of butter. Together they made vast quantities of jam. And when the time came--- SPLAT! They trapped the wasps and together they hauled the sandwich out to sea with helicopters and balloons and airplanes and everything else.
This book show kids that working together accomplishes bigger things than trying to go it alone. Great book for all kids.
The Giant Jam Sandwich
This book show kids that working together accomplishes bigger things than trying to go it alone. Great book for all kids.
The Giant Jam Sandwich
February 14, 2012
Apparently this book has been around longer than I have, but it took me this long to find it! This is a terrific childrens book! It was enjoyable for me, at least as much as it was for my kids when we read it together (maybe more!). The rhyming couplets are fantastic, the meter is perfect and the words trip right off your tongue when read aloud. The story is fantastical - wasps invade the town and the only way to get rid of them is to trap them in a GIANT JAM SANDWICH! - of course! The images and verse are clever and amusing. We had fun examining all the details in the pictures and imagining what might happen next. Although the story is preposterous, the book really captures the wonder and dashing hyperbole of 6 or so year olds with great fervor - this book definitely made me feel like a kid again!
June 23, 2015
This book is about a town who was infested by four million wasps, who were quite a nuisance. So they made a huge loaf of bread, and they cut a slice, put jelly on it, and as soon as the wasps were all stuck in the jelly, they put a slice of bread on top. They fixed the problem.
This book was great! The pictures look a little old, but the story is cute. All the townspeople look a little crazy, but they were smart when they came up with their excellent plan. The text fits perfectly with the pictures. And the pictures accurately depict what is going on.
This is a book that I would use for a bedtime story. It shows an excellent solution to an almost unsolvable problem. It teaches children how to think outside of their boxes, like the towns people did.
This book was great! The pictures look a little old, but the story is cute. All the townspeople look a little crazy, but they were smart when they came up with their excellent plan. The text fits perfectly with the pictures. And the pictures accurately depict what is going on.
This is a book that I would use for a bedtime story. It shows an excellent solution to an almost unsolvable problem. It teaches children how to think outside of their boxes, like the towns people did.
January 4, 2011
"An oldie but a goodie." Good for asking questions and making predictions...how will they catch the wasps? How will they make a sandwich big enough? Will it work? What will happen to the sandwich after they catch the wasps? I actually learned a new vocabulary word from this book. It was a good opportunity to teach Mackenzie how to use the context and the pictures to figure out a word we didn't know. Plua a good discussion of how to look words up in a dictionary. The word was "pate" which is the crown or the top of the head. The wasps bit a man on his fat bald pate. Hence the context clues...fat and bald. I love teachery moments like that!
March 22, 2010
I remember this book so completely vividly from my childhood. I have no idea how many times I read it, but it must've been several, since the images are so ingrained in my head. I had forgotten about this book and when I discovered it on the shelf at the "Kids for All Seasons" camp at the Four Seasons resort at Manele Bay on Lana'i, I was soooo excited to read it to our girls. Just a simple, fantastic story about a sandwich solution to a large pest problem. But indeed, I felt like I was sharing a bit of my childhood with them and it was great!
September 5, 2020
I see this on the shelves and my childhood launches itself at me. I loved this story. I still love this story. It has the logic of a child and so it makes utter complete sense. Still makes me a bit peckish tho......
Both boys loved it - laughed and puzzled about the logistics through the whole thing. Still perfectly logical to them.
A thought the tractor/helicopter was brilliant and C loved the image of the wasps all 'jammed' together. Knew they'd love it!
https://openlibrary.org/works/OL64319...
Both boys loved it - laughed and puzzled about the logistics through the whole thing. Still perfectly logical to them.
A thought the tractor/helicopter was brilliant and C loved the image of the wasps all 'jammed' together. Knew they'd love it!
https://openlibrary.org/works/OL64319...
August 18, 2012
The town of Itching Downs...it's that delightful musical word use that makes this my all time favorite children's book! The colorful prose is only bolstered by the whimsical arwhork in this book. I just recently retold this story to a friend's daughter as we watched a few pesky wasps while on vacation. The story is simple and practical, and yet seems impossible and amazing as a child! It was such a part of my childhood memories, that I searched out two copies for my sons ( it is out of print). If you can get your hands on a copy, don't worry about jam hands, and grab it!
November 15, 2012
Haha, I love this book! Throughout this class, looking through books, I keep seeing books that I remember loving... for no apparent reason. This book, was one of those. It's rhyming, it's silly, and has great illustrations. I think this book would be great to read to any elementary class, it's just fun! The enemy is a wildly-disliked creature, wasps; and the heroes are townspeople. A very simple, yet outrageous book.
January 8, 2013
My seven year old brought this book home from the school library-- we enjoyed it the first time when he read it to me, but the vocabulary in it is extensive (and excellent!), and we couldn't resist having me read it back to him immediately after so that we could enjoy the delightful rhythm. Not only is the poem/ story well written, but the pictures are fantastically funny in a "How the Trollusk Got His Hat" kind of way and we loved really looking through them to see what was going on.
October 31, 2015
This is a classic in the canon of children's literature and picture books. It tells the story of how, as a collective, the people of Itching Down solve the problem of a wasp invasion. The verses are catchy and children always like the sense of rhythm that the bring but it has always been John Vernon Lord's coloured ink and crayon pictures that always captured me. So many little stories taking place and a proper sense of middle-England feel to it.
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November 26, 2015My brother was raving about this book the other day as apparently he had and loved it as a child. My sister and I didn't remember it but both thought it sounded familiar when he described the plot. And apparently my nephew (6 weeks old as of this writing) would really like it as a Christmas present so I bought it for him and couldn't resist a read. It's cute and fun. I think I'm going to like having a nephew to read kids books too.
August 27, 2010
I squealed when I ran across this at our library. My Mom used to read this to my sister and me when we were younger, and I couldn't wait to share it with Jordan as well. Just as I remembered, the views of the giant pieces of jammed bread made me yearn for a post-story snack (before the wasps arrive, of course!).
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