The Secret Lives of Animals: 1,001 Tidbits, Oddities, and Amazing Facts about North America's Coolest Animals

by Stacy Tornio, Ken Keffer

The Secret Lives of Animals is the perfect mix of field guide know-how and armchair entertainment. In addition to the standard field guide notes and range maps, the meat of the book will offer up “spark moments” in nature—something fascinating or memorable that catches your attention and sets you on a path of lifelong learning. The Secret Lives of Animals will feature more than 100 North American animals and over 1,000 tidbits in a fun, colorful, illustrated format.

264 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2015

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

An informative fact book about various species in North America. Best to be read in small amounts to avoid information overload. Probably meant for young adults or children, but a good read for adults too.

[Kimber Wheaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review

The Secret Lives of Animals is a fun reference guide with lots of great facts and nice illustrations. I loved that it concentrated on North American animals. It encourages kids to head outside and look around nature to see what they can spot.

Each animal, bird, sea creature and insect is presented with an illustration and interesting facts in an easy to read and understand format. Some feature "Science Q and A" and others have a "Go Outside" box that explains how to find the creature in the wild. I thoroughly enjoyed the "little-known facts" presented on each animal, and I'm sure children will enjoy this feature as well.

The sections are well-organized, featuring invertebrates up to large mammals. There is also an index in the back to make finding a particular animal a snap. I liked the section in the back, "Animals by State and Province", with a quick breakdown of where to find each animal.

Any book that encourages children to head outside for some fresh air is aces in my book. This is a great book for fun and for school projects.

[LAWonder10 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a quick reference book of the various types of living creatures throughout the world. It is filled with great illustrations and"tidbits" of information. For instance, Did you know there are more than 10,000 species if ants in the world? or... Did you know some Catfish have sharp spines on their fins that can poke you? Each animal has a brief description next to its picture the some added, less known information that relates to the animal or its environment. This quality print book includes not only Insects, and Fish - mentioned above - but includes Herptiles, , Invertebrates, Mammals, and Fowl. There is an index where the reader can quickly look up a species, plus, the places one can go to discover their habitat. There are 253 pages of helpful information, It is definitely useful for all libraries. One can impress one's peers with brief information on so many creatures!
This is brief enough for an eight year old yet enjoyable and interesting enough for any adult!

[Victoria Brinius · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book to have for kids. In a society where research is done mostly on line, this book is fun and refreshing. It is very kid friendly and easy to read. My favorite parts of this book are the "Go Outside" sections for the animals. These activities are anything from finding a spiderweb to waiting in the dark for bats! I also really liked the little known facts and I learned some new things as well. I am giving this book a 5/5. I was given a copy to review, however all opinions are my own.