A bookworm is any insect in its larval (or adult) forms that will injure books by gnawing away at the binding and piercing through the pages making small holes. No single species may properly be called the bookworm, because a large number of insects feed upon dry, starchy material or paper and all of these different species may damage books. There is actually nothing amusing about the damage that bookworms cause. They tunnel through books, at times all the way from front cover to back, leaving holes on every page, or they carve meandering tracks across pages, obscuring text, weakening bindings, and leaving the paper vulnerable to tearing. The culprits are not really worms having a long cylindrical tube-like body, no limbs, and no eyes, but other types of minuscule insects or creatures who like to live in, and eat, books, because they are attracted to the leather bindings or the wooden shelves the books are kept on. This is the reason why many libraries have strict rules against bringing in any food or drinks, which might attract insects and cause future damage to the precious books.
The glue makes a nice meal for the bookworms and the pages become warm places for them to burrow through. These bookworms can’t get enough of books, but if we can kill their parents before they lay their larva, we can prevent the books from being damaged. We should also try to keep our books dry and clean, and remove them from the shelf every now and then to prevent a buildup of dust which insects like to nest in. Once you see “frass” (insect poop) that spells trouble as this is a sure sign that a mother is lurking around. Once a book worm inhabits a book and begins laying eggs, getting rid of the intruders before they destroy the book can be a challenge, but with some persistence it can be done. The bookworm only wants the same thing that we do, being close to the warm, safe, environment that is provided by a good story.
Written for Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Tale Weaver #318 hosted by Michael where the prompt is bookworm.