Nic Bishop: Snakes

by Nic Bishop, Nic Bishop (Illustrator)

Overview

YIKES!!! Join naturalist Nic Bishop for a closer look at scaly, scary snakes!

Snakes are scaly, scary, silent predators. They use powerful venom or crushing strength to overwhelm their victims. Then they swallow them whole!With breathtaking full-page images, Sibert Medal-winning photographer Nic Bishop introduces the terrifying and beautiful world of snakes. The simple, engaging text presents both basic information and captivating details about the appearance, habits, and remarkable abilities of these amazing reptiles. An index and glossary are included, along with an author's note detailing his research and the fun stories behind the photographs.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545206389
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	10/01/2012
Series:	Nic Bishop
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	1,077,769
Product dimensions:	8.36(w) x 11.10(h) x 0.38(d)
Lexile:	850L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Sibert Medalist Nic Bishop is the author and photographer of many award-winning books for children, including Red-Eyed Tree Frog; Chameleon, Chameleon; Nic Bishop Spiders; and most recently, Nic Bishop Snakes. He has a doctorate in biological sciences and a passionate interest in many of the smaller animals on our planet. Nic lives in New Zealand. Visit him online at nicbishop.com.

Editorial Reviews

Calling snakes “strange, secretive, and surprising,” Bishop offers an excellent photographic guide to these reptiles in all their diversity. Striking magnified images depict a variety of snake species in the wild and in captivity, including a feathered bush viper (whose scales resemble tree leaves), garter snakes overwintering in a burrow, and an African egg-eating snake living up to its moniker. Bishop accompanies the photographs with factual information about each specimen, as well as observations about the snakes’ physical characteristics and behavior (“Extra-large scales on a snake’s belly act like the tread on your shoes”). Herpetologists in training, look no further. Ages 4–8. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Nic Bishop's Animal Series"A fascinating depth of information." —THE HORN BOOK, starred review"Stupendous photographs." —KIRKUS REVIEWS, starred review"Spectacular fold-out pages." —SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, starred review"A wealth of intriguing facts." —BOOKLIST, starred review"Thoughtfully crafted." —BCCB, starred review

From the Publisher

Gr 3–5—Nearly two dozen close-ups of photogenic snakes are highlighted in this introduction. A lucid text, set either on different colored pages or overlaid on photo backgrounds, briefly describes basic anatomy; major physical characteristics common to all snakes; distinctive characteristics of more than a dozen world species; locomotion; diet; hunting and feeding methods; defense mechanisms; and egg-laying and birth of young. The photographs, a mix of full-page and spreads, are sharply focused, well composed, and expertly lighted so that the reptiles' beautiful skin colors and patterns are shown to advantage-the shot of a Central American eyelash viper in attack mode is especially good, and a four-page foldout displaying a coiled Mojave rattlesnake is impressive. Picture captions identify the species depicted and offer additional information on characteristics; the degree of magnification employed is indicated. Other snakes shown include the parrot snake, carpet python, and African egg-eating snake. An afterword describes some of the difficulties Bishop encountered in photographing his subjects. This title compares well with such standards as Sandra Markle's Outside and Inside Snakes (S & S, 1995) and Seymour Simon's Snakes (HarperCollins, 1992) and offers some new tidbits of information. Bishop's brilliantly photographed book will appeal both to snake fans and casual browsers.—Karey Wehner, formerly at San Francisco Public Library

School Library Journal