Review by Horn Book Review
Appealing to offbeat, lurid, and macabre sensibilities, this title is stuffed with facts about Earth's strangest insects and arachnids. Some of the text is small and densely packed, and the photographs--prominently featuring razor-sharp teeth and bizarre bodily protuberances--would be better appreciated in larger format. Still, many a child will be fascinated by the contents of this series. Ind. (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Ten of nature's little horrors, presented in a gallery of close-up photo portraits with all-too-detailed commentary. From the evocatively named tongue-eating louse to the green-banded broodsac, which moves between hosts by crawling up inside a snail's eyestalk to mimic a caterpillar so that a bird will eat it, these "tiny terrors and mini-monsters" are well-chosen to give even the most hardened browsers the heebie-jeebies. Mendez's dramatic photorealistic portraits and more schematic views of each parasite or predator in action join a selection of close-up stock photos, and Rake describes behaviors or symptoms with indecent relish. "One [Indian red scorpion] sting can cause humans excruciating pain, vomiting, breathlessness, convulsions, and sometimes major heart problems. Oh, and if that isn't enough, it can also turn a victim's skin blue and make them froth at the mouth with pink, slimy mucus." The co-published Creatures of the Deep offers like delights for 10 sea creatures, from the goblin shark to the blobfish and the sarcastic fringehead (yes, really!). Each volume closes with a summary "Rogues' Gallery" and further notes on selected entries. Browsers' delights, but definitely not for the squeamish. (Nonfiction. 8-10) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
