There are Bugs Everywhere

Description

There are bugs everywhere! Some of them live in jungles, some of them underwater, and some certainly live in your house. There are Bugs Everywhere is the second in a series of non-fiction books from Britta Teckentrup. Young readers will learn where in the world all sorts of animals can be found and all the weird and wonderful things about them that they never imagined were true. This is non-fiction with spark and personality from a much-loved illustrator.

Britta Teckentrup is a fine artist who has written and illustrated many well-loved books for children, including the Odd One Out series. Born in Hamburg, Germany, she later studied at St Martin's College of Art and the Royal College of Art in London. Lily Murray studied English Literature at university and has worked as a writer and editor for over 15 years. She enjoys walking, birdwatching, reading books with her children, reading books without her children and talking to her dog.

I'll preface this review with a warning: I'm quite squeamish and find insects with long, hairy legs terrifying. When I was little, I had a nightmare about woodlice taking over the world and shoving me in a tumble dryer. So I don't usually 'do' bug books. However, I adore Britta Teckentrup's illustrations and I decided to be brave and look inside this lovely book. I must say that her colourful, sensitive drawings make learning about insects more palatable than the photographic versions available to children and adults. I can see the character and possibly beauty of a Japanese boxer mantis, whereas when I was at school, and my friend brought some preying mantises(?) in to show us all, I had to hide in the corridor. The book tells you what constitutes a bug (it must belong to the arthropods group and have six or more legs as well as an exoskeleton); how they see and breathe; how long they've been around (some have existed for over 500 million years in the ocean) and how many of them are the ultimate hunters. As well as providing facts, the book invites the reader to make their own guestimates about things such as which is the strongest, longest, noisiest and fastest. This is a bug book that I can stomach, though I still remain wary around these amazing but sometimes stomach-churning creatures. * Childtastic Books * A wonderful exploration of the millions of species of bugs around the world.' * June Magazine *