What do you think?
Rate this book
Animal Series
Worm
A richly illustrated celebration of the mysterious world of worms in science and culture.
This book celebrates the mysterious world of worms from gardens to toothaches and beyond. Kevin Butt introduces all manner of worms, including many that bear only superficial resemblance to our limbless, sinuous friends in the dirt. To trace the intimate history between worms and people, he discusses worms that live in bodies, soil, and water as well as worms from literature and mythology. Throughout the ages, worms have been portrayed as benign, even beautiful, yet at other times spitefully ostracized as deadly creatures. This richly illustrated book looks at the microscopic and the very large indeed, asking what the future holds for both human- and worm-kind.
This book celebrates the mysterious world of worms from gardens to toothaches and beyond. Kevin Butt introduces all manner of worms, including many that bear only superficial resemblance to our limbless, sinuous friends in the dirt. To trace the intimate history between worms and people, he discusses worms that live in bodies, soil, and water as well as worms from literature and mythology. Throughout the ages, worms have been portrayed as benign, even beautiful, yet at other times spitefully ostracized as deadly creatures. This richly illustrated book looks at the microscopic and the very large indeed, asking what the future holds for both human- and worm-kind.
- GenresNonfiction
176 pages, Paperback
Published January 8, 2024
1 person is currently reading
31 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 5, 2025
What an honour to have managed to purchase the one copy of this book at the Bristol Stanford's! I was enticed at the fact that this is a book of solely worms - all nature books at the minute are about the 'secret' of this or the 'hidden life' of that, and honestly, this book is the answer for the glorious Worm itself.
Upon reading about worm biology, cultural history, and the perils of worm research, the ground beneath me does not feel the same. The correct thing a book like this should do. Worms keep that ground beneath us alive and thriving, but what do we really know about these little ecological engineers? Kevin Butt barely goes into the simplistic ways of the worm, nor is it a simple introduction, we are invited to feast on every nuanced characteristic - how they find mates, why they are so slimey, the variety of burrowing activities, their life cycles, every bout of worm wiggling into popular culture, the history of vermicomposting and the complications of 'worm industries', and the UK biologists who paved the way for worm studies- even shouting out this one old lesser known Hampshire clergyman Gerald White, producing one of the earliest accurate scientific documentations of worms in the 1770s. Our understanding of general biology and the world itself decomposes a little bit- the worms nibble away at it all - yes, Darwin is not the beginning of Biology... yes, humans are not needed to maintain simultaneously healthy and fertile soils... yes, even the simplest holes in soils can say so much. Followed by many, many gorgeous photos - excellent choices which really kept engagement going! From medieval paintings, sculptures, to 1950s superheroes, folklore, and worm-charming competitions, it's the finest immersion into worms you could possibly get.
However, having been used to reading the hyped up accessible nature books of its time (Entangled Life.. Temperate Rainforests.. so on), this book reads a little bit more like a textbook - very blunt, and not much interconnection or flow between the topics. Ironically for a book about worms, the wording, everything, comes across quite dry. It was hard to fully engage and be absorbed into the topic, I feel like I had to be an expert Biologist to get it. All the biological names for worms swirled around in my head and dissolved, around halfway through I haven't a clue what was going on. Diagrams with labels whilst the subject is being introduced would always, always be helpful!
But I can truly appreciate that Kevin is a solid expert on the subject and practically knows everything, the extent of worm research, and what more will be done. Once it's the end of the book and we burrow into the world of worm research, it's clear that worm academia is dense and insanely active, yet so, so SO much more work is needed. I gathered from the very ending that, perhaps, underpinning all this dry textbook writing and lack of flow is in fact the complex challenge itself of summarising the worm - so really, this book must've been a challenge, great effort, and I'm pleased to have read it!
Upon reading about worm biology, cultural history, and the perils of worm research, the ground beneath me does not feel the same. The correct thing a book like this should do. Worms keep that ground beneath us alive and thriving, but what do we really know about these little ecological engineers? Kevin Butt barely goes into the simplistic ways of the worm, nor is it a simple introduction, we are invited to feast on every nuanced characteristic - how they find mates, why they are so slimey, the variety of burrowing activities, their life cycles, every bout of worm wiggling into popular culture, the history of vermicomposting and the complications of 'worm industries', and the UK biologists who paved the way for worm studies- even shouting out this one old lesser known Hampshire clergyman Gerald White, producing one of the earliest accurate scientific documentations of worms in the 1770s. Our understanding of general biology and the world itself decomposes a little bit- the worms nibble away at it all - yes, Darwin is not the beginning of Biology... yes, humans are not needed to maintain simultaneously healthy and fertile soils... yes, even the simplest holes in soils can say so much. Followed by many, many gorgeous photos - excellent choices which really kept engagement going! From medieval paintings, sculptures, to 1950s superheroes, folklore, and worm-charming competitions, it's the finest immersion into worms you could possibly get.
However, having been used to reading the hyped up accessible nature books of its time (Entangled Life.. Temperate Rainforests.. so on), this book reads a little bit more like a textbook - very blunt, and not much interconnection or flow between the topics. Ironically for a book about worms, the wording, everything, comes across quite dry. It was hard to fully engage and be absorbed into the topic, I feel like I had to be an expert Biologist to get it. All the biological names for worms swirled around in my head and dissolved, around halfway through I haven't a clue what was going on. Diagrams with labels whilst the subject is being introduced would always, always be helpful!
But I can truly appreciate that Kevin is a solid expert on the subject and practically knows everything, the extent of worm research, and what more will be done. Once it's the end of the book and we burrow into the world of worm research, it's clear that worm academia is dense and insanely active, yet so, so SO much more work is needed. I gathered from the very ending that, perhaps, underpinning all this dry textbook writing and lack of flow is in fact the complex challenge itself of summarising the worm - so really, this book must've been a challenge, great effort, and I'm pleased to have read it!
July 17, 2024
really good if you're a fan of worms
August 7, 2024
Had beautiful pictures but no organization.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews