The Ant's Nest

[Starred review]. This book is one of a series of at least six that focus on places where animals live. If the other books in the series are done as well as this one, then it must be said that the publisher has done a great service to the promotion of natural history appreciation. This book on ants has all the features that belong in a book for young readers: fabulous color photographs and artful page design; simple, intriguing, accurate text that was vetted, before publication, by a professional in the field; an excellent glossary (where boldface words in the text are found); a useful index; a bibliography; at least one link to the Internet; and sturdy, hard-backed binding. Readers are introduced to nest architecture; castes and their function; how new colonies are established; inter-ant communication; various ant economies, including fungus gardeners and aphid tenders; and parasitic and predatory ants. In contrast to the narrative of the ant-style communities are brief descriptions of termite and paper wasp nests. All measurements are given in English and metric units. Readers at the lower elementary levels will be able to handle this book nicely. Even younger children may be enthralled by the colorful pictures and simple stories read to them by parents and teachers. As icing on the cake, the author adds a touch of mystery in the ant world, telling of the discovery of a strange ant, entirely new to science, found in the Amazon rain forest and known (so far) by only one very remarkable specimen. Subliminal message to the reader: Much remains to be discovered in the natural world, so get out there and take a look!

[Starred review]. This book is one of a series of at least six that focus on places where animals live. If the other books in the series are done as well as this one, then it must be said that the publisher has done a great service to the promotion of natural history appreciation. This book on ants has all the features that belong in a book for young readers: fabulous color photographs and artful page design; simple, intriguing, accurate text that was vetted, before publication, by a professional in the field; an excellent glossary (where boldface words in the text are found); a useful index; a bibliography; at least one link to the Internet; and sturdy, hard-backed binding. Readers are introduced to nest architecture; castes and their function; how new colonies are established; inter-ant communication; various ant economies, including fungus gardeners and aphid tenders; and parasitic and predatory ants. In contrast to the narrative of the ant-style communities are brief descriptions of termite and paper wasp nests. All measurements are given in English and metric units. Readers at the lower elementary levels will be able to handle this book nicely. Even younger children may be enthralled by the colorful pictures and simple stories read to them by parents and teachers. As icing on the cake, the author adds a touch of mystery in the ant world, telling of the discovery of a strange ant, entirely new to science, found in the Amazon rain forest and known (so far) by only one very remarkable specimen. Subliminal message to the reader: Much remains to be discovered in the natural world, so get out there and take a look!

Aronin’s contribution to the Spectacular Animal Towns series gives only a glimpse of the physical construction of ant colonies, but children will still come away with an appreciation of the extraordinary insects that build them. Using straightforward language, the author introduces one topic per double-page spread. The main text appears in boxes at the top of the spread, the remainder of which is devoted to captioned photos (and a few minimally helpful charts), placed against a dark green, patterned background. Many of the photos are bordered as if taken from a photo album (odd, given the book’s topic), but that doesn’t really detract from their eye-catching subjects, which will lead browsers right back to the informational content. Frankly, it’s hard to resist close-ups of a worker ant moving a seed as big as itself or a queen carrying nine tiny eggs in her mouth. Unfamiliar terms, in boldface, are clearly defined in the text itself, though a glossary is appended.