Owl Puke, the Book

by Jane Hammerslough

Kids love science-especially when it's hands-on-and kids love yucky stuff. The Owl Puke Book and Owl Pellet brings the best of those two worlds together in a unique package that follows directly in the tradition of The Bug Book & Bug Bottle and The Bones Book & Skeleton (which together have 3.3 million copies in print). What is an owl pellet? It's the football-shaped object regurgitated twice a day by owls, which contains the skeleton of at least one owl meal, be it a mouse, vole, shrew, or small bird. Used in elementary schools to teach the food web--but virtually unavailable at retail--a professionally collected, heat-sterilized owl pellet is now married to a lively, two-color illustrated book filled with facts and related activities about these most amazing birds. And what a story the Owl Puke Book tells--of the food chain, animal anatomy, life in the forest; of a bird that could read the bottom line of an eye chart from one mile away; and of a fierce hunter that swallows its prey headfirst and digests everything but the bones, which it spits back up in a pellet. As for the story the pellet tells, kids need only a toothpick to find out. The package includes a tray to hold the bones and a chart to help identify the pellet's contents.

It's a hoot.

Genres: Nonfiction, Childrens

64 pages, Paperback

First published December 17, 2003

About the author

Jane Hammerslough is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) with a client-focused, goal-oriented approach grounded in trauma research and evidence-based practices. She works with individuals, couples, and families, helping clients explore life patterns, build connections, and address relationship challenges and estrangement. Her practice integrates modalities such as EMDR, Trauma-Focused CBT, Imago, and Gottman Method. Jane’s background includes research on PTSD and trauma among post-deployed veterans. Also a published author of 30 books and contributor to academic and media publications, she consults on parenting and family issues. She is licensed in New York, Florida, California, and Massachusetts.

Reviews

[karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love ceridwen! besides having the second-coolest name ever (sorry, but penn jillette's daughter moxie crimefighter beats you by a smidge), and writing hilarious reviews, she has also shown a willingness to wrench newly-gifted presents out of the hands of her children to mail them to a stranger on the internet! because of her, i got to play with owl vomit!! is there a medal for that?? she deserves a parade right through times square...

this was a fascinating experiment. what a bold publisher!! somehow they corralled what must be an entire factory of bulimic owls and they hired them to create a new toy for young children - partially-digested mouse skellingtons. and a book to go along with it!! (wash your hands before handling, please). so now i have a teeny tiny mouse skull and jawbone and oh so many tiny ribs... and some sharp bits that i can't identify, despite the handy bone-sorting tray. it's just amazing.

and i didn't notice an odor at all. which may be because where i work, there are a large number of homeless men, and i know each one by their particular aroma, even from one or two aisles away... this nose has been through some wars, and owl vomit, by comparison, is like a bouquet of prom flowers. and bones.

but i am a little worried.

if you know me, you know about my tailypo story (if you don't, you may read it in my tailypo review), but so what happens when the little mouse comes looking for his tiny ribs?? what am i supposed to say?? i'm not giving them back, that's for sure.

i can take a mouse, no problem.

thank you ceridwen!! i am retaliating with something also cool, and hopefully less gross to your children.

can we have this for other animals too, please??

come to my blog!

[Lego Robot Ninja · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mum: So how are you going to rate this book?

LRN: Two. Pretty good, but disgusting.

Mum: Do you even remember this book?

LRN: YES.

Mum: What do you remember about it?

LRN: Owl pellets are when they puke out the skin and bones of mice and stuff they eat. It looked like there was sticks in it and stuff. Like a big ball o' sticks.

Mum: Do you remember not wanting to dissect the owl pellet?

LRN: Totally. Pee-ew. It smelled bad. >:O---o <--This is an emoticon of me barfing.

Mum: Do you have anything else to say about this book?

LRN: Anyway, I love owls, because they are so interesting. They can turn their heads all the way around. And there were a lot of facts about owls and owl puke in this book. I guess that's it for the review!

[Tiuri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and informative.

*does contain evolution

[Elaine Reinhard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful interesting book filled with fascinating insights and facts. Enjoyable and well written.

[Elvis Porter · Rating 4 out of 5]

A step by step instructions on how to disassemble an owl pellet.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book that you buy with actual owl pellets to dissect and learn about! Great science for the kids!

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent book. I've already learned most of the stuff in this book, so not much interesting.