Poor Louis has "wiggilitis" ( yes I just made that name up). He cannot control his impulses to stay still. Whatever he is doing, wherever he is the wiggles sneak up on him and he lets loose. Every time he erupts with enthusiastic bursts an adult tells him he has ants in his pants. He doesn't quite know what that means but when he inspects his pants closely he sees no sign of ants whatsoever.

His mother explains to him that having ants in your pants means you wiggle a lot and she explains to him how he might get control of his outbursts. She teaches him the Wiggle Dance. Now that sounds like fun and doable right?


"Wiggle and jiggle.
Jump up and down.
Shake your hands
and turn around.
Take a deep breath.
Scrunch up your nose.
Wobble your knees
and wiggle your toes."


Louis learns when he sits down to make sure he has his own personal space bubble around him which makes perfect sense now that we have to social distance from each other. She hands him a focus squishy that will keep his fingers busy so he'll be able to pay attention, and finally she encourages him not to talk while others are speaking so he can hear what they have to say.

"If you can do all of these things, Louis,
you can be the boss of your ants."


The illustrations are expressive, and kid friendly making the message of the book resonate with kids. The author has included "Tips for Teaching Kids to Sit Still" at the end of the book for parents, teachers and caregivers. I highly recommend this books.

This story was hysterical. My son is going to absolutely love this story. It’s one of those stories that a child will her wound up about And act out. I loved it. I love when I find cute stories for my son that are interactive but not necessarily meant to be.

I Have Ants in My Pants, written by Julia Cook and illustrated by Carrie Hartman, is a cute story about a young boy who can't seem to sit still. Rather than being punished or made to feel bad about his tendency to wiggle, this story ultimately reminds the reader that kids are meant to move, and that sitting still can be tough for kids. It offers some tips on helping kids learn to sit still when absolutely necessary, with a reminder that kids should be allowed to move as much as possible.

The writing is a little awkward at times, switching between rhyming and not. The artwork is charming, and the story overall left a smile on my face. A lovely addition to any kid's library and a good one for parents and teachers alike, who might need a little reminder that kids need to move.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Independent Center for Youth Issues for the ARC!

I received an electronic copy from Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) through NetGalley.
Cook continues her series to help children solve their own issues. Louis struggles to sit still. This happens in a variety of situations until his mom offers him ideas to keep his body under control. Young readers will relate to the text rhythms and suggestions. Tips for adults who work with children included at the end.

This is a great book for young children. It explained “ants in your pants” and gave practical solutions to help children be successful. I liked how at the end, the boy was able to explain to his friend what “ants in your pants” meant and what he could do to solve the problem! Definitely will purchase!

This book celebrates the internal energy that some kids have, especially during school. My three-year-old son is like this, he always needs an outlet for his energy. I found this book was written simplistically, in a way that children can understand and follow along. The pictures were descriptively drawn and the storyline is well thought out.

Julia Cook pens another winner with I Have Ants in My Pants! I adore Julia's books and this one is another gem added to our collection. We meet sweet Louis again at school but he just can't stop being so squirrel-y. He can't help it. Readers watch as Louis struggles with everyday moments and learns some strategies to help tame the busy ants in his pants.

This book came out at the perfect time as we start a new school year - whatever that looks like for kiddos by you. The strategies Julia shares can be applied by students who are always on the move or for anyone who needs just a extra something when their body needs to be still.

What I really love about Julia Cook books is that they introduce some normalcy to what kids see at school or at play dates. The sooner my kids see behaviors that are different than theirs and can understand the why behind those actions, the sooner they can develop empathy. Different isn't bad. It's just different. And we can learn from that.

I read this book in bed with my daughter and I thought that it was a fun story.

I liked the images used to bring the story to life, they were really highly quality and nice and bright and just what the book needed.

I thought that it was well written and it really got the point over that it was looking to make too.

It is 4 stars from me for this one.

Oh my goodness! I loved this book! My ten year old old....who not only has ants in his pants, but has colonies of ants in his pants thought it was hilarious!

**I received an e-ARC from NetGalley for an honest review**

As a person who has trouble sitting still and focusing, I was definitely looking forward to seeing how they tackled the issue in the book.

I'll be honest, I was getting upset with the adults for not giving Louis something to fidget with in his hands. After all, it seems a problem that Louis has probably had for a while. So when the focus squishy finally made an appearance I was relieved.

I'm also a little upset that no adult other than Louis' mother seemed to address the issue in a useful manner.

Overall, the book was very nicely done, although it would have been nice to see something other than kicking as the "ants in the pants" response. You maybe could have had pulling a string on a shirt or doodling with pen/marker/etc on his pants without him realizing. By using only kicking, I can see a few kids using this as an excuse to kick a fellow kid or two.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book really hit home for both me and the kiddo who does have ants in her pants. I loved the story, the morale, and the art work. As a mom to a kid who doesn't stop fidgeting, and gotten numerous feedbacks that she can't sit still whether it's to write, to eat or even during the circle time, I really related to the story. My kid liked it, because of the repetitive wording, and she thought it was very funny.

We both also liked all the coping suggestions the book gave.

Julia Cook can always be relied on to tell a good story. Ants in the Pants is perfectly timed for young kids going back to school who have a hard time with staying still. My son found it a little repetitive but really liked that the main character learned how to manage his movement and help relate to a friend at the end that is suffering from the same thing. Often little people that fidget feel like they are alone with their challenge so I really liked the relatability of the two boys at the end as well.

This is a cute book about what "ants in your pants" really means and how to control those ants in your pants.

Rating: 2.5 stars

This is a cute book about a young kid named Louis who gets the wiggles and everyone keeps telling him that he has "ants in his pants." Every time someone tells him this he does this little internal monologue thing with an AA BB ABCB rhyming scheme that was actually kind of annoying. The rest of the book mostly doesn't rhyme, except sometimes there's a sort of forced sort of rhyming scheme. It just doesn't flow well. Also Louis's internal rhyme is so repetitive that my six year was rolling his eyes and literally yelling at the book "NOT AGAIN" by the end.

At the end Louis's mom explains to him that he is a "verb" sort of kid who needs to be moving around and gives him some solutions to how he can learn to sit still, like by doing a wiggle dance before he needs to sit down for a while, making sure he has a personal space bubble, and having a fidget toy to help him pay attention. I think it got a bit about my boys' heads during the advice for how to "be the boss of your ants." That part lost my 4 year old's attention, but was probably some good advice for my 6 year old (who is also a verb, and about to start Kindergarten).

Guest review by Jaime (age 6): "You can't see any ants because they're inside, bro. He's saying the same thing over and over. STOP SAYING THE SAME THING."
Did you like the book? "Yes."
Would you read it again? "Yeah, sure."
Would you tell other kids to read this book? "Sure, if they want to."

Guest review by Link (age 4):
Did you like the book? "Yeah!"
What was your favorite part? "The other guy had ants in him pants."
What was your least favorite part? "The other guy and then next girl had pants in her pants." (I ... am not sure what this means, like I said, he stopped paying attention about halfway through.)
Would you read it again? "Yeah."
Would you tell other kids to read this book? "Yeah."

I have ants in my pants is a simple story about one little boy who just cant seem to keep still. All the adults tell him he "must have ants in his pants". Poor Louis looks and looks for the ants but cant find them! Finally his mother tells him that they arent real and thats its just something adults say when children cant sit still. Louis learns how to get all his wiggles out and how to use a squishy to help him focus.

Many small children struggle with sitting still for long periods of time. Cook helps to normalize the feelings many children have when they just cant seem to control their wiggles. At the end of the book their are also stratagies that can be used to assist with impulse control.

If you are a parent or teacher to a little wiggler this book could be very helpful!

I recieved a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Working in a daycare with children ranging from 6 months to 12 years old, we attempt to promote active thinking. We do this by decreasing our allotted television time and encouraging reading and other educational activities.

Why I Chose This Book:
Cutest cover.

Platform I Received the Book From:
Received a free copy from NetGalley

Skills the Book Focused On:
-Practical Reasoning
-Differentiating between literal and figurative meanings.
-Self-Reflection and correction

Other Skills Shown in Book:
-Discipline
-Mentorship at a young age

What I Loved:
-The simplistic yet funny explanation of the adage “ants in pants”.
-Illustrations
-Very relatable for both children and adults
-Loved how the author incorporated another kid at the end which made created an opportunity for the main character to share what he had learned
-Author included practical tips for teaching kids to sit at the end of the story


Would I Recommend This Book:
Yes. Super cute story that the kids loved. Even had the adults smiling at how accurate the depiction of a child with ants in their pants….



This book was reviewed based on my honest personal preference.

Kudos to the author for being bold enough to share their creativity with the world.

Really enjoyable read. It was quick, cute, and a helpful book for children to read. A fun addition to any child's library that just can't sit still.

The general concept is very good for children who are wiggly. At first the book looked slightly overwhelming and wordy. But, actually ended up being very easy to read and flowed nicely. Ended up being a much quicker read than expected. I was confused with the concept of calling a child a Verb. i got a little confused at what the purpose was at that point to educate about sitting still or if it was a trying to introduce different terms to younger population. The idea of introducing parts of language to a younger reader is a great one but i didn't think doing the two concepts at the same time was as effective as sticking to 1 theme.

Julia Cook’s books are always a hit she knows exactly how to speak to children to get them to understand. This book is about a boy that has trouble sitting still, everyone keeps telling him he has ants in his pants. He just doesn’t quite understand what that means. This book goes over what that means as well as giving suggestions on how to sit still better. This would be a great book to use in the classroom classroom. It also gives great suggestions for adults on how to help children.

Ants in my pants is a book to help kids who have a hard time sitting still. The story follows a little boy who just can't help moving around. Unfortunately for him, he always moves at the wrong time. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was that I got bored of the same passage repeating each time he was told he had ants in his pants. I enjoyed the helpful tips at the end of the book.