A Beetle Is Shy

K-Gr 4—The author/illustrator pair have created yet another colorful and intricate work. The combination of Aston's soft text and Long's watercolors provide readers with an enjoyable insight into the world of beetles. Text presented in a sweeping cursive font introduces a general statement about beetles ("A beetle is telegraphic"), while text rendered in a smaller, nonscript font expands on this trait or ability ("Most beetles send messages to each other using chemicals called pheromones…. Others 'talk' to each other with squeaky, raspy sounds…"). Several illustrations depict the beetle species in their natural environments (a boll weevil munching on a plant), while others juxtapose everyday items with the insect to give a sense of size perspective (the North American featherwing beetle and the eye of a needle). Each species is labeled, and the endpapers feature an illustrated free-form list of all the beetles pictured. The only thing that could make this book better would be a glossary of the beetles with additional information for the curious child.