Photographer Nic Bishop is willing to do a lot to get a good shot. For some of the images in this striking book, he hosted a number of eight-legged houseguests in order to capture incredible examples of spider behavior on film. Bishop’s dazzling, larger-than-life photographs are not for the fainthearted, at least where spiders are concerned. The sight of dozens of baby wolf spiders clinging to their mother’s back in full-page photographic glory is enough to make even spider enthusiasts shiver. An engaging informational narrative, and a fascinating essay from Bishop on how he achieved some of the shots, rounds out this creepy—literally—volume. (Ages 7–12)

Nic Bishop's signature up-close, stop-action photographs show spiders larger than life.

For the first to third grade set, spiders are fascinating and suitably gruesome, especially when looked at in EXTREME close-up. Amazing images show the beauty and otherworldliness of spiders. Simple, engaging text conveys basic information about spiders as well as cool and quirky facts. One stop-action montage shows a spider leaping twenty times its body length!