BOOKLIST
“The writing is accessible and full of humor; a cassette of flies packaged to be sent into space is described as ‘the best mix-tape there is.’ More than 80 eye-catching color images contribute to the book’s appeal. The authors are entertaining storytellers and have written a fascinating and often amusing account of how the study of insects has shaped history and continues to lead to remarkable discoveries.”
AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST
“Erica McAlister is a master raconteur, and she draws you in immediately to a set of ten chapters, each a fascinatingly eclectic exploration of how insects did it first, how we humans found out, and the possible biomimetic or bioinspired applications of whatever wonderful thing it was that insects did first. […] McAlister has a way with words, and a way of blending human history with natural history that makes the pages turn with pleasure.”
NATURE
“Bees abound in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, symbolizing the tears of the sun god Ra, transformed after falling to Earth. Insects have long fascinated naturalists, yet much remains unclear. Estimates of the total number of species, for example, range from 5 million to 2.2 billion. But, in their enchanting, illustrated book, entomologist Erica McAlister and documentary producer Adrian Washbourne shed some light on insects: for instance, robber flies can see accurately over 0.5 metres, because their eyes have ‘a type of zoom lens!'”
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