Look closely at the cover of this book, with the glowing oversized color photo of a brown and reddish jumping spider, standing on tiptoes, gazing right at you. The details are mesmerizing, from its glossy black eyes (5 of 8 are visible; most spiders have eight, as you learn on page 15) to the hairs and barbs on its legs and pedipalps (the two short arms a spider uses to hold its prey, you’ll find out on page 11). As the author and photographer Nic Bishop explains (on page 39), that male spider is actually doing a little dance to attract a mate, and maybe he’s hoping she won’t eat him first. The females do that sometimes. Bishop studied and photographed all of the more than a dozen types of spiders represented here, some in the wild (including the largest, the Goliath birdeater tarantula from South America), and, as he reveals in his author’s note, several that he raised at home and observed for months so he could capture rare events like molting, courting, and egg-laying. You’ll also discover, through his clear descriptive prose, splendorous full-page close-ups, and photo captions, how spiders catch and poison their prey, spin webs, defend themselves from enemies, and look after their young.

This type of descriptive nonfiction makes a fascinating read-aloud for even very young children and will lead spider fans to other books about arachnids on the 595.4 shelf of your local library. For instance, those intrigued by the tarantulas will also be wowed by Sy Montgomery's more detailed book, The Tarantula Scientist, from the topnotch "Scientists in the Field" series, with photos by—Nic Bishop! For numerous spider activities, take a gander at www.mrspohlmeyerskinderpage.com/spiders.htm and www.zoomdinosaurs.com/themes/spiders.shtml. Fanciers of small creature will also revel in the new Nic Bishop Frogs, which is every bit as ravishing.


Themes: ANIMALS. SPIDERS.