“A completely satisfying package… It’s impossible not to warm to herpetology after reading aloud poems… Meganck’s wry cartoons amplify the humor. The backmatter, strong as the main text, serves young readers well but will also spur teachers interested in multidisciplinary units on to new heights… Child readers and educators will find themselves enthralled by short, punchy poems and the science behind them.” —Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW

“Using the same format as Superlative Birds (2019) and Leaf Litter Critters (2018), which never gets old, Bulion pairs jaunty poems with science notes…. The thorough yet equally spirited science notes complement the poems… Once again, Bulion awes—and ewws—readers with facts disguised as fun.”—Booklist, STARRED REVIEW

“Delightful… The joyful poems beg to be read aloud… The jaunty illustrations amplify the text’s humor….a fun and informative addition for nature lovers.” —School Library Journal

Notable Poetry Books and Verse Novels List —National Council of Teachers of English, 2021

Eureka! Nonfiction Children’s Book Award Silver Honor —California Reading Association, 2020

Leslie Bulion is the author of several children’s books, including Uncharted Waters, The Trouble With Rules, and Fatuma’s New Cloth, winner of the African Studies Association’s 2002 Children’s Africana Books. She lives in Connecticut. You can visit  her website here.

Designer and illustrator Robert Meganck is a professor of illustration, graphic design, digital imaging, and color theory at Virginia Commonwealth University.  He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI and an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, MI.  He has received over 300 regional, national, and international awards for illustration and graphic design work. He lives in Virginia.