DU IZ TAK?

Du Iz Tak? uses a made-up bug language and follows a year in the life of a group of insects. I have already shared a book with a very similar idea, Smon Smon. Du Iz Tak? is a true literary masterpiece, intertwining meaning, fun and language. When reading it, we have to interpret and decode the bug language, guess, and disagree about some of the phrases. If your students loved translating Smon Smon, they will find this book just as exciting.

The entire book is set in one location.

Originally, there’s a log with a hairy caterpillar climbing up a twig. Meanwhile, two winged insects are wondering what the green plant is.

Ta ta! says the caterpillar, and we assume it means Hello! Some children don’t even notice that a few things have changed while they are watching the caterpillar. The grass is now growing near the boulders, and the sprout is getting slightly bigger.

The caterpillar turns into a cocoon, and some new minibeasts arrive to chat about the plant. They look a bit confused and keep asking, Du iz tak? What do you think they are discussing? Is there a problem? Are they excited?

Sometimes the change in the setting is so subtle that we don’t even notice it. But there’s now a little white thing growing by the log. The plant keeps developing. The creatures are talking about someone called Icky. The writer uses a capital letter, so I assume it’s a name. You can see that the white thing is growing bigger along with the grass.

Icky! Icky! ICKY! The bugs are either excited or terrified because they are getting louder. What are they looking for?

Unexpectedly, the door opens and we can see a woodlouse in his nice little log house.

We find out that the ribble they were looking for is a ladder, and now they seem rather grateful. But don’t forget to look at the corner of the page, where the white thing seems even bigger and wider. And right behind the boulder there are two eyes. Just eyes for now — we can’t be sure. Maybe it’s a snail.

It looks like the creatures are enjoying their day out in the tree and around it. How funny that the woodlouse is chilling out with a book on his deck chair. He is having a whale of a time. There are a few smoke rings. Is someone smoking a cigar? Is it a candle? Or maybe someone is cooking inside the log house?

By the way, the white thing has grown into a mushroom, and the eyes belong to a snail.

Oh no, it’s not a snail. It’s a slug crawling across the ground under the night sky. There is a new creature now sitting on the log and playing the violin. Music of the night.

Morning. They are busy, aren’t they? What happened to the mushroom? They have some tools with them and some planks. What are they going to build?

Oh, there’s a dangerous spider on the log!

What happened to the plant? Someone has nibbled one of the lower leaves. The ladybird is basking in the sun with a cheeky drink and snacking on the toadstool. They are like pirates on a good day, enjoying the sun. Not a care in the world!

They don’t even notice that the ants are warning them of the imminent danger coming their way. Maybe when they look that way, they will also see that one of the twigs has turned into a creature. Or has it always been there?

Everyone is shocked. Some are sad and feeling down; others are angry and fuming. Everyone is right upset. The spider is working on his web, destroying what they’ve been building together as a team.

But, as good stories for children go, here comes a hero. Its massive wings scare the creatures and they cower. The bird snatches the spider and takes off.

Now they are safe and sound. They get busy with their unplanned spring cleaning.

And so the story goes. As we approach the final page, we see the cocoon turning into a wonderful butterfly. As the seasons change, the animals move out of their once-beautiful flower. Finally, winter arrives, starting the whole process all over again.