The Beetle Book by Steve Jenkins



Bibliography:

Jenkins, Steve. 2012. The Beetle Book. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. 9780547680842

Book Summary:

What is the smallest known beetle? Which beetle is the biggest of them all? How do beetles breathe? Answers to these questions and more can be found inside of Steve Jenkins’s book The Beetle Book which is packed full of fun and interesting beetle related facts.

Critical Analysis:

This fact-filled book, written and illustrated by Steve Jenkins, introduces children to the world of beetles using colorful illustrations, diagrams and text. All throughout the book children will find silhouettes of beetles which represent the actual size of the beetle being labeled. Large diagrams are presented with detailed explanations in order to further breakdown the makeup of a beetle’s body. What types of beetle related information can readers expect to find in this fact book? Body parts, diets, living environments, life cycles, movement, and sizes are just some of the facts children can learn about while reading this book. 

Jenkins provides beautiful illustrations of the various types of beetles using vibrant colors to allow the brightly colored beetles to stand out. The colors Jenkins used in his illustrations are bold and beautiful, but accurately depict the beetle's true markings. I found the jewel beetle to be the most beautiful beetle of them all. To me,  the frog beetle and the giraffe weevil had strangest looking bodies of all of the beetles in the book. What do you think? Which one is your favorite?

Overall, this book is well organized and even offers readers a beetle name index located in the back of the book. Additionally, a species-by-region list is available at the end of the book for viewing pleasure. One thing this book is lacking though, is a bibliography to support the facts found within this book.

This book is recommended for children ages 4 and up.

Review Excerpt(s):

• Booklist – starred review – (2012) “A richly varied and visually riveting introduction to beetles, both familiar and strange.”
• Kirkus Reviews – given a blue star for remarkable merit – (2012) “distinguished both as natural history and work of art.”

Connections:

•  Pair this title with other great favorites such as:                         
               Quest for the Tree Kangaroo by Sy Montgomery
               Weird but True by National Geographic Kids and Jonathan Halling
               Snakes! By Monica Molina
• Give the children a magnifying glass and encourage them to go outside on a beetle hunting expedition. Encourage the children to bring paper and crayons so they are able to record their findings.
• Create a beetle collage. Print out several different images of beetles (in all colors) as found in The Beetle Book. Glue or paste the images on a large postboard. This activity can be done as a prop or as a group activity.