Things That Make You Go Yuck!: Crooked Critters -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“The question is whether or not you choose to disturb the world around you, or if you choose to let it go on as if you had never arrived.” 

~ Ann Patchett ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Jennifer Louden has a good post at Writers in the Storm HERE with 6 Ways to Increase Your Productivity as a Writer Without Burning Out. 

I keep finding posts about words one should take out of one’s writing. If I read enough of these maybe I can get rid of about 20,000 flabby words hanging on my fat manuscript. Melissa Allen has a guest post on Fiction University HERE that has 14 Words that are Hurting Your Writing.

Beth Lewis has a guest post HERE on The Writer’s Dig with Tips for Creating Voice in Your Character. It’s got some great ideas. 

Last week I offered a gently-read hardback copy of Jubilee by Patricia Reilly Giff to one of you. This week's winner is Greg Pattridge, middle-grade writer and middle-school teacher (brave soul!) from Colorado who blogs at Always in the Middle. Check it out HERE. He writes great book reviews and has other interesting stuff on his blog. Congratulations, Greg! I will get your book out soon.

The book I am highlighting this week is a really fun non-fiction book. I love science books with a fun twist. This is that. Here is my review for the San Francisco Book Review for Things that Make you Go Yuck!: Crooked Critters by Jenni Dlugos and Charlie Hatton.

Imagine a fungus that can attach itself to a living being and not only cover the being with pointy spikes but invade the being and dissolve its organs and kill it as well. With ants, the fungus can actually release a chemical into the ant’s brain that turns it into a zombie. That’s nasty! And that is just one example of the many, many rude, crude, and murderous critters in this fun volume. This is part of a series of four books that examine the yuck-factor found throughout nature. Filled with plants and animals that spit, strangle, suffocate, slather, and otherwise threaten, injure, and kill other critters will fascinate young (and older!) readers. 

There is little the middle-grade crowd, especially boys, likes better than a book with a very high yuck-factor. This book, as the title implies, is going to be a big hit with the middle-grade readers. Authors Jenn Dlugos and Charlie Hatton have gathered some of the most fun facts in the natural world to keep youngsters reading and learning. The writing is crisp and the accompanying photographs are up-close and a little terrifying. This book is a real winner!

I have a gently-read ARC for one of you. To win, all you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower, and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do.

Don't forget to check out Shannon Messenger's wonderful blog HERE for many more Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday reviews and giveaways.