Joshua and the Spider

Constable Ant was silent for a moment, thinking hard as he stared into the distance. Then he jumped to his feet, puffed out his chest, and exclaimed, “This is a job for Captain Sting and his Yellow Jacket Squadron!”

This is a story of faithful friendship, heroism, parental love, and obedience.

Inspired by authors such as Beatrix Potter (The Tale of Peter Rabbit), Maurice Sendak (Where the Wild Things Are), and Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (The Little Prince), Adam Blocker and award-winning illustrator Josh Taylor set out to take you and the child in your life on an adventure, fraught with the seemingly eternal perils of childhood.

Joshua is a young caterpillar that does not understand his parents’ warnings of danger. He decides he knows best and sets out on a daring adventure to prove to everyone that he is entirely capable without guidance from the wiser, older, and more experienced. Along the way, he encounters the deceptive Banana Spider, Mala Femina; he discovers what true faithfulness is; he witnesses daring bravery from a lost cause; and he discovers that true parental love isn’t always a shower of kisses. This story is sure to keep your child engaged as it is filled with an adventure around every tall blade of grass!

If you are looking for a book to read to your child over several sessions, this is it!

Intended for boys, age six to ten.


Adam Blocker, while serving the public through various means, has been writing most of his adult life. As a young man, he worked for an emergency response team and had the opportunity to respond to Hurricane Mitch in 1998, clearing mud, building shelters, and passing out clothes to isolated communities. He later joined the US Army as a “jumping paralegal,” which means he helped prosecute criminal cases and jumped out of airplanes on occasion. Later, after going to school at night and transferring to UNC-Chapel Hill, he graduated with a BA in classical civilizations and political science. After coming back into the Army as an officer, he supported our efforts, while deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, to make the world a safer place. He later attended the National Defense University and wrote his master’s thesis on water deficiencies in Iraq and how securing the basic necessities of life are vital to good governance and security. Today, along with his beautiful wife Meg, he enjoys life every day the sun is up and continues to work towards making the world a better place for all mankind by writing every chance he gets. Stay tuned for his next story!