An eye-opening, as well as stomach-churning, angle on who’s really the boss in the natural world.
A parasitologist explains why no creature—including you—ever truly dines alone.
In their “flesh-gnawing, bloodsucking, poop-inhabiting lifestyles, parasites pretty much rule the world,” Wood claims, pointing to their near ubiquity in every corner of the biosphere. Along with marveling at the nearly miraculous way many of them have to pass through several species of hosts in order to complete their life cycles, she offers a highlight reel of unfailingly memorable examples—among them a nematode that coexists peaceably in the heads of white-tail deer but riddles the brains of any other species unlucky enough to ingest it, a cat parasite that can alter the behavior of both mice and humans, and the bacterium responsible for the Black Death. It’s all in good, as well as incredibly entertaining, fun, and anyway, as the author firmly notes, it wouldn’t be wrong to regard parasites as “good guys,” considering the vital roles they play in controlling insect pests and even regulating ecosystems…not to mention the implications of alarming recent increases in autoimmune diseases in developed countries, where general exposure to parasites has been reduced. “We can’t live with them,” she sums up perceptively, “but maybe we also can’t live without them.” Mottram adds schematic views of select parasitical life cycles, livened by humorously expressive beasts and bugs.
An eye-opening, as well as stomach-churning, angle on who’s really the boss in the natural world. (glossary) (Nonfiction. 10-13)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781250833983
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Godwin Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
“In 1875 there were perhaps fifty million of them. Just twenty-five years later nearly every one of them was gone.” The author of many nonfiction books for young people (Bridges; Truck; Giants of the Highways, etc.) tells the story of the American bison, from prehistory, when Bison latifrons walked North America along with the dinosaurs, to the recent past when the Sioux and other plains Indians hunted the familiar bison. Robbins uses historic photographs, etchings, and paintings to show their sad history. To the Native Americans of the plains, the buffalo was central to their way of life. Arriving Europeans, however, hunted for sport, slaughtering thousands for their hides, or to clear the land for the railroad, or farmers. One telling photo shows a man atop a mountain of buffalo skulls. At the very last moment, enough individuals “came to their senses,” and worked to protect the remaining few. Thanks to their efforts, this animal is no longer endangered, but the author sounds a somber note as he concludes: “the millions are gone, and they will never come back.” A familiar story, well-told, and enhanced by the many well-chosen period photographs. (photo credits) (Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83025-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2000
Here is an adventure in a unique setting. The lively text and lovely watercolors document three and a half months of a summer the artist and author spent at the South Pole, as part of the National Science Foundation Antarctic Artists & Writers Program. Hooper describes everyday life aboard the research ship Laurence M. Gould, a sturdy orange icebreaker that scientists use to travel between the islands to study the wide variety of animals who come each year to breed and raise their young. An assortment of penguins, elephant seals, giant petrels, huge skuas, and leopard seals hold center stage. Scientists are less important than the serious business of successfully raising young in the short summer season. The author captures the drama of the ice-cold ocean, alive with life: “Swarms of barrel-shaped blue-tinged salps, stuck together in floating chains. Minute creatures with red eyes. Sliding through the water in a curving path like a ribbon.” The artist provides striking paintings of the landscape and the animals in soft washy colors, and quick pencil sketches. The ice is lemon gold with mauve shadows, and the sea a silver gray in the 24-hour day. Animals are expressive and individual. The krill, the tiny shrimp-like creatures that form the backbone of the ocean food chain, appear in luminous glory. The author concludes with a page on global warming, a map of the islands visited, and an index. From cover to cover a personal and informative journey. (Nonfiction. 7-12)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-7922-7188-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: National Geographic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2000
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