Random House New Releases - Nature - Insects & Spiders

Butterfly People by William R. Leach

2014-01-21T00:30:00-05:00

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the World
Written by William R. Leach

Trade Paperback, 416 pages | Vintage | History - United States; Nature - Insects & Spiders; History - Modern - 19th Century | $18.95 | 978-1-4000-7692-5 (1-4000-7692-7)

With 32 pages of full-color inserts and black-and-white illustrations throughout.

From one of our most highly regarded historians, here is an original and engrossing chronicle of nineteenth-century America’s infatuation with butterflies, and the story of the naturalists who unveiled the mysteries of their existence.

A product of William Leach’s lifelong love of butterflies, this engaging and elegantly illustrated history shows how Americans from all walks of life passionately pursued butterflies, and how through their discoveries and observations they transformed the character of natural history. Leach focuses on the correspondence and scientific writings of half a dozen pioneering lepidopterists who traveled across the country and throughout the world, collecting and studying unknown and exotic species. In a book as full of life as the subjects themselves and foregrounding a collecting culture now on the brink of vanishing, Leach reveals how the beauty of butterflies led Americans into a deeper understanding of the natural world. He shows, too, that the country’s enthusiasm for butterflies occurred at the very moment that another form of beauty—the technological and industrial objects being displayed at world’s fairs and commercial shows—was emerging, and that Americans’ attraction to this new beauty would eventually, and at great cost, take precedence over nature in general and butterflies in particular.

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised by David George Gordon

2013-07-16T00:30:00-05:00

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised 40 Ways to Cook Crickets, Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Their Kin
Written by David George Gordon

eBook, 136 pages | Ten Speed Press | Cooking - Specific Ingredients; Nature - Insects & Spiders; Cooking - Reference | $10.99 | 978-1-60774-437-5 (1-60774-437-6)

With its stylish new package, updated information on the health and environmental benefits of insect eating, and breed-your-own instructions, this new edition of The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook is the go-to resource for anyone interested in becoming an entomological epicure.

For many Americans, eating a lowly insect is something you’d only do on a dare. But with naturalist and noted bug chef David George Gordon, bug-eating is fun, exciting, and downright delicious!

Now you can impress, enlighten, and entertain your family and friends with Gordon’s one-of-a-kind recipes. Spice things up at the next neighborhood potluck with a big bowl of Orthopteran Orzo—pasta salad with a cricket-y twist. Conquer your fear of spiders with a Deep-Fried Tarantula. And for dessert, why not try a White Chocolate and Wax Worm Cookie? (They’re so tasty, the kids will be begging for seconds!)

Today, there are more reasons than ever before to explore entomophagy (that’s bug-eating, by the way). It’s an environmentally-friendly source of protein: Research shows that bug farming reduces greenhouse gas emissions and is exponentially more water-efficient than farming for beef, chicken, or pigs. Mail-order bugs are readily available online—but if you’re more of a DIY-type, The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook includes plenty of tips for sustainably harvesting or raising your own.

Filled with anecdotes, insights, and practical how-tos, The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook is a perfect primer for anyone interested in becoming an entomological epicure.

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised by David George Gordon

2013-07-16T00:30:00-05:00

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised 40 Ways to Cook Crickets, Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Their Kin
Written by David George Gordon

Trade Paperback, 136 pages | Ten Speed Press | Cooking - Specific Ingredients; Nature - Insects & Spiders; Cooking - Reference | $16.99 | 978-1-60774-436-8 (1-60774-436-8)

Butterfly People by William R. Leach

2013-04-09T00:30:00-05:00

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the World
Written by William R. Leach

Hardcover, 416 pages | Pantheon | Nature - Butterflies; Nature - Insects & Spiders; History - Modern - 19th Century | $32.50 | 978-0-375-42293-5 (0-375-42293-5)

Butterfly People by William R. Leach

2013-04-09T00:30:00-05:00

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the World
Written by William R. Leach

eBook, 416 pages | Pantheon | Nature - Butterflies; Nature - Insects & Spiders; History - Modern - 19th Century | $16.99 | 978-0-307-90787-5 (0-307-90787-2)

An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches by Ekaterina Smirnova

2011-05-31T00:30:00-05:00

An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches
Written by Ekaterina Smirnova

Hardcover, 96 pages | Mark Batty Publisher | Nature - Insects & Spiders; Humor | $17.95 | 978-1-935613-18-3 (1-935613-18-9)

City dwellers, especially in places like Manhattan, grow accustomed to having several hundred uninvited houseguests in their homes at all times: cockroaches. Slinking in the shadowy hollows between walls, under sinks, and along the floorboards, the ubiquitous urban insects are loathsome to most and frightening to many. But you only fear what you don’t know. Ekaterina Smirnova’s An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches will help everyone terrified of their six-legged roommates: through Smirnova’s illustration and explanation, the entire life-cycle of the typical cockroach is laid bare. Part humorous, part disgusting, An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches is a necessary component of every urban bookshelf.

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles

2011-03-22T00:30:00-05:00

Insectopedia
Written by Hugh Raffles

Trade Paperback, 480 pages | Vintage | Nature - Essays; Nature - Insects & Spiders; Social Science - Anth/Cultural | $16.95 | 978-1-4000-9696-1 (1-4000-9696-0)

A New York Times Notable Book

A stunningly original exploration of the ties that bind us to the beautiful, ancient, astoundingly accomplished, largely unknown, and unfathomably different species with whom we share the world.

For as long as humans have existed, insects have been our constant companions. Yet we hardly know them, not even the ones we’re closest to: those that eat our food, share our beds, and live in our homes. Organizing his book alphabetically, Hugh Raffles weaves together brief vignettes, meditations, and extended essays, taking the reader on a mesmerizing exploration of history and science, anthropology and travel, economics, philosophy, and popular culture. Insectopedia shows us how insects have triggered our obsessions, stirred our passions, and beguiled our imaginations.

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles

2010-07-02T00:30:00-05:00

Insectopedia
Written by Hugh Raffles

eBook, 352 pages | Vintage | Nature - Essays; Nature - Insects & Spiders; Social Science - Anth/Cultural | $13.99 | 978-0-307-37972-6 (0-307-37972-8)

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles

2010-03-23T00:30:00-05:00

Insectopedia
Written by Hugh Raffles

Hardcover, 480 pages | Pantheon | Nature - Essays; Nature - Insects & Spiders; Social Science - Anth/Cultural | $29.95 | 978-0-375-42386-4 (0-375-42386-9)

A stunningly original exploration of the ties that bind us to the beautiful, ancient, astoundingly accomplished, largely unknown, and unfathomably different species with whom we share the world.

For as long as humans have existed, insects have existed, too. Wherever we’ve traveled, they’ve traveled, too. Yet we hardly know them, not even the ones we’re closest to: those that eat our food, share our beds, and live in our homes.

Organizing his book alphabetically with one entry for each letter, weaving together brief vignettes, meditations, and extended essays, Hugh Raffles embarks on a mesmerizing exploration of history and science, anthropology and travel, economics, philosophy, and popular culture to show us how insects have triggered our obsessions, stirred our passions, and beguiled our imaginations.

Raffles offers us a glimpse into the high-stakes world of Chinese cricket fighting, the deceptive courtship rites of the dance fly, the intriguing possibilities of queer insect sex, the vital and vicious role locusts play in the famines of west Africa, how beetles deformed by Chernobyl inspired art, and how our desire and disgust for insects has prompted our own aberrant behavior.

Deftly fusing the literary and the scientific, Hugh Raffles has given us an essential book of reference that is also a fascination of the highest order.

http://insectopedia.org/

Insights From Insects by Gilbert Waldbauer

2005-03-11T00:30:00-05:00

Insights From Insects What Bad Bugs Can Teach Us
Written by Gilbert Waldbauer

Trade Paperback, 311 pages | Prometheus Books | Nature - Insects & Spiders; Science - Botany | $20.99 | 978-1-59102-277-0 (1-59102-277-0)

"Insects get a bum rap." So says world-renowned entomologist Gilbert Waldbauer, whose enthusiasm and engrossing writing on the subject of insects have been praised by the New York Times Book Review, the Times Literary Supplement, and many other prestigious publications. In this fascinating, beautifully illustrated book, Dr. Waldbauer explains that the "bum rap" is mainly due to the small percentage of bugs that are a nuisance or harmful to humanity, the pests that make up less than 2 percent of all insects. He profiles twenty such "troublesome bugs," showing how the study of these creatures has led scientists to many basic discoveries that have enhanced our understanding of life.
The reader learns how an American entomologist was awarded France’s gold medal of honor for rescuing the French wine industry from destruction by the aphid-like "grape phylloxera"; how the World Health Organization almost completely eradicated malaria through the use of DDT before the insect adapted to the insecticide and became resistant; how some insects disguise themselves to avoid detection; how others survive the subzero temperatures of winter; why some flies have a uterus and a mammary gland; and many more strange and tantalizing true tales about these wonderful, troublesome "pests"—pests that have taught us vital lessons about survival, nature, and the environment.
A natural storyteller, Dr. Waldbauer has written a bug book that you won’t be able to put down. Whether you relish every story from cover to cover or thumb through to find your "favorite," most resourceful insects, you’ll come away with a new appreciation for the marvelous tiny creatures that are essential to the web of life.

Dragonflies by Steve Brooks

2003-03-17T00:30:00-05:00

Dragonflies
Written by Steve Brooks

Trade Paperback, 112 pages | Smithsonian Books | Nature - Insects & Spiders; Science - Entomology | $16.95 | 978-1-58834-064-1 (1-58834-064-3)

Dragonflies and damselflies have lived on earth for hundreds of millions of years, and there are thousands of different species living in watery environments throughout the world. But few people will have looked beyond the flash of blue, red, green or yellow to consider the lives of dragonflies.

These masters of aerial combat are the best fliers in the animal kingdon. Harmless to humans, yet a dreaded predator in the insect world, dragonflies swoop after prey, fight rivals, hover like helicopters as they defend territory, and engage in elaborate courtship displays. Brooks explains how ferocious larvae bloom into masters of aerial predation and reveals the beauty and complex lives of these intriguing insects.

Man Eating Bugs by Faith D'Aluisio

1998-09-24T00:30:00-05:00

Man Eating Bugs The Art and Science of Eating Insects
Written by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio

Trade Paperback, 192 pages | Material World | Cooking - Natural Foods; Social Science - Anthropology; Nature - Insects & Spiders | $19.99 | 978-0-9840744-1-9 (0-9840744-1-4)

The team behind the critically and popularly acclaimed anthropological photoessays MATERIAL WORLD and WOMEN IN THE MATERIAL WORLD make their debut on our list with this oddly tantalizing book about a subject that's creeping into prominence: insects as food for people. With the distinctive blend of thoughtful cultural inquiry, intrepid exploration, and sumptuous photography that has earned them worldwide renown, the authors document the practice and history of entomophagy around the globe, discovering that insects are a nutritious, plentiful, and varied food source. From Mexico, where people celebrate the annual Jumile Festival with bug hunts and beauty queens, to China, where whole families make their livings from scorpion ranches, over a dozen bug-eating countries (including the USA!) are profiled in MAN EATING BUGS. Each chapter examines a culture through a stunning array of location photos, interviews with locals, and highlights from the authors' field journals, as well as carefully photographed indigenous recipes. A colorful, beautiful, and intelligent book.

Awards1999 James Beard Award Winner

From the Hardcover edition.

The Insect World of Fabre by Jean-Henri Fabre

1991-04-30T00:30:00-05:00

The Insect World of Fabre
Written by Jean-Henri Fabre

Trade Paperback, 356 pages | Beacon Press | Science - Entomology; Nature - Insects & Spiders; Biography & Autobiography - Science & Technology | $20.00 | 978-0-8070-8513-4 (0-8070-8513-8)

Jean Henri Fabre, nineteenth-century French entomologist and author of the massive Souvenirs Entomoligies, has inspired perhaps more modern writer/naturalists than any other chronicler of the natural world. Edwin Way Teale's selection of the most compelling of Fabre's writing makes The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre the essential edition of the writer Darwin called "the incomparable observer."

National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Insects and Spiders by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

1988-04-12T00:30:00-05:00

National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Insects and Spiders
Written by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

Trade Paperback, 192 pages | Knopf | Nature - Insects & Spiders | $10.95 | 978-0-394-75792-6 (0-394-75792-0)

This guide decsribes and illustrates 80 of the most abundant and colorful insects and spiders in North America. An additional thirteen insects are mentioned as similar or related species. 80 color plates.

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

1980-11-12T00:30:00-05:00

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders
Written by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

Hardcover, 992 pages | Knopf | Nature - Insects & Spiders | $21.95 | 978-0-394-50763-7 (0-394-50763-0)

Spiders, bugs, moths, butterflies, beetles, bees, flies, dragonflies, grasshoppers, and many other insects are detailed in more than 700 full-color photographs visually arranged by shape and color. Descriptive text includes measurements, diagnostic details, and information on habitat, range, feeding habits, sounds or songs, flight period, web construction, life cycle, behaviors, folklore, and environmental impact. An illustrated key to the insect orders and detailed drawings of the parts of insects, spiders, and butterflies supplement this extensive coverage.

Random House New Releases - Nature - Insects & Spiders

Butterfly People by William R. Leach

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the WorldWritten by William R. Leach

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised by David George Gordon

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised 40 Ways to Cook Crickets, Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Their KinWritten by David George Gordon

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised by David George Gordon

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised 40 Ways to Cook Crickets, Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Their KinWritten by David George Gordon

Butterfly People by William R. Leach

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the WorldWritten by William R. Leach

Butterfly People by William R. Leach

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the WorldWritten by William R. Leach

An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches by Ekaterina Smirnova

An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches Written by Ekaterina Smirnova

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia Written by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia Written by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia Written by Hugh Raffles

Insights From Insects by Gilbert Waldbauer

Insights From Insects What Bad Bugs Can Teach UsWritten by Gilbert Waldbauer

Dragonflies by Steve Brooks

Dragonflies Written by Steve Brooks

Man Eating Bugs by Faith D'Aluisio

Man Eating Bugs The Art and Science of Eating InsectsWritten by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio

The Insect World of Fabre by Jean-Henri Fabre

The Insect World of Fabre Written by Jean-Henri Fabre

National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Insects and Spiders by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Insects and Spiders Written by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders Written by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the World
Written by William R. Leach

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised 40 Ways to Cook Crickets, Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Their Kin
Written by David George Gordon

The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook, Revised 40 Ways to Cook Crickets, Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Their Kin
Written by David George Gordon

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the World
Written by William R. Leach

Butterfly People An American Encounter with the Beauty of the World
Written by William R. Leach

An Illustrated Guide to Cockroaches
Written by Ekaterina Smirnova

Insectopedia
Written by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia
Written by Hugh Raffles

Insectopedia
Written by Hugh Raffles

Insights From Insects What Bad Bugs Can Teach Us
Written by Gilbert Waldbauer

Dragonflies
Written by Steve Brooks

Man Eating Bugs The Art and Science of Eating Insects
Written by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio

The Insect World of Fabre
Written by Jean-Henri Fabre

National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Insects and Spiders
Written by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders
Written by NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY