United States, have made "a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children". The committee cited his "visual observations of the natural world" and his innovative designs: "Taking the medium of collage to a new level, Carle creates books using luminous colors and playful designs often incorporating an interactive dimension, tactile or auditory discoveries, die-cut pages, foldouts, and other innovative uses of page space." In a 2012 survey of School Library Journal readers, The Very Hungry Caterpillar was voted the number two children's picture book behind Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are. In 2019, a jumping spider mimicking a caterpillar was named in Carle's honor, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the publication of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and to celebrate his 90th birthday. The Frist Art Museum exhibition "Eric Carle's Picture Books: Celebrating 50 Years of The Very Hungry Caterpillar" was on display from October 18, 2019, through February 23, 2020. In November 2019, Carle sold his publishing rights to Penguin Random House. Death Carle died on May 23, 2021, at his summer studio in Northampton, Massachusetts, from kidney failure, at the age of 91. An official announcement was made by his family on May 26, 2021, via their website. Selected works Eric Carle wrote over 70 books that sold over 170 million copies. 1967, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (illustrator) 1968, 1, 2, 3 to the Zoo 1969, The Very Hungry Caterpillar 1970, Pancakes, Pancakes! 1970, The Tiny Seed 1970, Tales of the Nimipoo (illustrator) 1970, The Boastful Fisherman (illustrator) 1971, Feathered Ones and Furry (illustrator) 1971, The Scarecrow Clock (illustrator) 1971, Do You Want to Be My Friend? 1972, Rooster's Off to See the World 1972, The Secret Birthday Message 1972, Walter the Baker 1973, Do Bears Have Mothers Too? (illustrator) 1973, Have You Seen My Cat? 1973, I See a Song 1974, Why Noah Chose the Dove (illustrator) 1974, All About Arthur 1975, The Hole in the Dike (illustrator) 1975, The Mixed-Up Chameleon 1977, The Grouchy Ladybug 1981, The Honeybee and the Robber 1982, Otter Nonsense (illustrator) 1983, Chip Has Many Brothers (illustrator) 1984, The Very Busy Spider 1985, The Foolish Tortoise (illustrator) 1985, The Greedy Python (illustrator) 1985, The Mountain That Loved a Bird (illustrator) 1986, Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me 1986, All in a Day (Mitsumasa Anno editor) 1987, A House for Hermit Crab 1988, The Lamb and