As someone who has spent quite a bit of time outdoors, Ive had my share of insect encounters. Ive been bitten or stung by wasps, bees, fire ants, midges (a generic term for any number of black flies), deer flies, fleas, ticks, mosquitos, and in one unpleasant instance an assassin bug (also known as a kissing bug). However unpleasant these insects have been theres one thing I can say with certainty after reading Wicked Bugs: The Louse That Conquered Napoleon's Army & Other Diabolical Insects it could have been much, much worse. Wicked Bugs (a more accurate title would have been Wicked Arthropods) is basically just a laundry list of insects and arachnids that negatively affect humans (either through their bites or stings or through the damage they inflict on crops and trees). Here are a few fun facts:- Mosquitos are the most deadly species on the planet, killing approximately 725,000 people each year through disease transmission (followed distantly by snakes 50,000 deaths, and dogs 25,000 deaths).- Arthropods are the most numerous animals on the planet by numbers, number of species and bio-mass.- Assassin bugs can transmit Chagas disease, something I learned through research after being bitten but fortunately the bugs in the U.S. Southwest are not carriers. - Humans could not survive without insects. As to the book, its a quick interesting read, if a bit disgusting at times (I found the sections on parasitic worms particularly unpleasant). Although the scope is pretty narrow, the book will appeal to those with an interest in nature and evolution, and perhaps horror because unlike an evil clown who lives in the sewer, these creatures actually exist.

PROSLike its companion book, Wicked Plants, this book is gorgeous. The drawings are gorgeous, and that's saying a lot for a book about bugs. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I love pretty books. Bugs (and other creepy-crawlies) are truly fascinating. I learned a lot! I liked this book better than Wicked Plants because "bugs" have so much more variety than plants. (Being more mobile than plants, I think they can simply be more creative.)CONSParasites. I hate parasites. No, seriously, an irrational fear. Can I say it again? I HATE PARASITES.Every time I have an itch now, I fear that I have some horrifying infestation. p.s. I know that bugs are technically only insects of the order Hemiptera, (thank you high school biology and wikipedia) and the author knows it, too, but it's easier to type than "insects and arachnids, etc."

This was such an interesting read and an easy and fun one, too. Fully recommended to anyone who likes curious facts about nature. Except if you have phobias, proceed with caution.

If you find DK Eyewitness Books engaging reading, you may like this sensationalist look at insects. I didn't. As an audiobook it was boring, confusing ("Meet the Family" sections must be sidebars in the book, but just made for weird insertions in the narrative) and poorly written and researched: scorpions sting, not bite; sentences like "Their range extends as far west as Michigan, Minnesota, North and South Dakota and Oregon and Washington" just don't make sense. I can't keep going.

This has been a book that was long recommended to me via person instead of GR and one that seems to be as present as the creepy crawlies found within it. Every time I was at a museum it has made its presence known, quietly taunting the reader to pick it up and test the pages within. First, though, a warning this isn't a book for those who are easily squeamish, fear or find insects a trigger to their deepest fears. Although there are some beneficial members found within the author is specifically tracking down the dangerous, the destructive and the painful while some of the introductory stories and their following paragraphs will bring you to attention fast. I truly appreciated the fact that the author introduced the reader to the wrong usage of the term bug and that she was going to wrongly use it as well. Although many would say this isn't that important, to me it shows that the author has truly set out to learn before sharing the information. I liked the presentation of the information as there was a picture of the topic in question followed on the next page by its name and scientific name. This was followed by a small box to the side with some quick scientific info in it for those who may be wanting to learn more. From there a story from a historical event mainly or even some contemporary events would lead off the exploration of the next few pages. To break-up the reading further the reader is treated with occasional group breaks that further study a specific shared trait such as corpse-eating, ant stings, zombies, etc. The section offers a quick introduction then does a quick and least formal presentation than other main subjects in the book of other would have been overlooked species. What I didn't like was that though the illustrations were detailed and a bit humorous at times like with the one with a saw they weren't in color. It would have been great to see these insects as they look in real life, especially since Amy would mention colors in her entries. My other dislike was the lack of organization even with organization. What I mean by this is that each entry had a tab that explained to the reader what its dark side was in one word but even though given in alphabetical order these designated tabs weren't so the reader was bounced from destructive to dangerous, etc. quite frequently. In the end this was a good and informative read that insect-lovers may enjoy if they like the dark sides of these animals. Otherwise if you may be the mischievous one you will have enough information at your finger tips to disturb the squemish at your next get-together, especially if if tends to be outside.