Thomas Eisner (1929–2011)

If you ever wondered about the secret life of that stink beetle that you antagonized for a chance to gross out your friends as a kid, this is the book for you. Or even better, if you ever wanted to know more about bugs but didn't have the wherewithal to pick up or read an entomology text, this is your book. Written in fascinating detail but still highly accessible to the laymen, this is the book to read for those people that find curiosity about the world around them to be a permanent show more companion. Eisner describes in detail that habits of and his experiments with beetles that spray boiling liquid and larvae that hide under thatched fecal shields among some of the assorted offerings. I picked this up in it's more expensive hard-cover format after browsing it in a major chain bookstore and ended up taking it home even though I couldn't well afford the cost at the time and what a rare treat it turned out to be. This has found it's way to my permanent collection where I dearly hope my grandkids will one day browse it's pages excitedly oohing and ahhing. show less

A beautifully illustrated book about Thomas Eisner's career at Cornell studying the chemical emissions of insects, arthropods and millipedes. It is written in a quite accessible style, and includes a lot of the “thrill of the chase” and the serendipitous eureka moments he experienced over a lifetime of insect hunting. There are accounts of discovering the emissions of the bombardier beetle, and the ability of a particular millipede to create cyanide without poisoning itself.

Plot: How bugs defend themselves

Pros: Really, really interesting. Lots of color pictures. One of a kind work.

Cons: Lots of big words and chemistry stuff I have forgotten.

Other Thoughts: Bugs are neat. Many of them taste bad to predators, sometimes they sting you, or bite you, or have venom. Ants seem really annoying (even to other bugs). Reminds me why science is cool as some insects have neatfully (a new fake word!) ingenious adaptations.

Grade: A

interesting.