A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures: An Illustrated Encyclopedia

by Sami Bayly

Make way for the world’s weirdest, most wonderful creatures—from the author of the forthcoming A Curious Collection of Dangerous Creatures

Publisher’s A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures was previously published in Australia as The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals.

What’s your favorite animal—a majestic lion, a graceful horse? Those are great choices, but have you considered the fangtooth moray eel? It has two rows of icicle-shaped teeth! And the monkey slug caterpillar is ready to cuddle . . . just look out for the stingers all over its body (and its six limbs that technically aren’t legs)!

It’s true, these animals are a little different—but their unusual features often give them incredible superpowers. Take the nearly blind star-nosed Its pink, flower‑shaped nose can detect the microscopic texture of everything it touches, and it does this at warp speed—up to 12 objects per second!

What’s more, many of these weird, wonderful creatures need our They’re endangered, and we can’t afford to ignore their well-being any longer. It’s time to find a peculiar creature to love! Why not the blobfish?

Genres: Nonfiction, Animals, Nature, Middle Grade, Science

128 pages, Hardcover

Published November 3, 2020

About the author

Sami is 27 years old and is currently based in Newcastle, NSW.

She has released 4 books, 3 of which are part of The Illustrated Encyclopaedia series: The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals, The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Dangerous Animals and The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Peculiar Pairs in Nature.

With her 4th being the first of a newly released series, How We Came To Be - Surprising Sea Creatures.
All published by Lothian/Hachette Australia.

Over the years Sami has won and been nominated for numerous awards, these include:
Winner of the Children's Indie Book of the Year Award - Indie Book Awards
Winner of the Environmental Award for Children’s Literature Non-fiction - The Wilderness Society
Winner of the Sun Project Shadow Judging - Shadowers’ Choice for the Eve Pownall Award - CBCA
Winner of the Best Designed Children’s Non-Fiction Illustrated book - Australian Book Design Awards.
2020 GOLD Winner for the Juvenile Non-Fiction Award - Foreword Reviews
Honour for the Eve Pownall Award - CBCA
Shortlisted for the Book of the Year for Younger Children - ABIA’s
Shortlisted for the Booksellers' Choice 2020 Book of the Year Awards - ABA’s
Shortlisted for the Children’s Book of The Year - Queensland Literacy Awards
Highly Commended for the NSW Community Educator of the Year - AAEE
Longlisted for the World Illustration Awards (Science & Technology category) - Association of Illustrators
Included in the top 50 Favourite Australian Books - Booktopia
Winner of the Emerging Artist Competition - The Olive Tree Market
Winner of the Start Your Studio Scholarship Award - Jasco Art
Winner of the William Fletcher Foundation Fund - University of Newcastle
Co-winner of the Scientific Illustration Scholarship - Australian Museum

Her books have also been published overseas in numerous countries including the UK, USA, South Korea and Russia. With future publications to be released in Sweden, Israel, China and more.

To keep up to date you can follow Sami on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samibayly/

Reviews

[Story · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this gorgeously illustrated and fascinating book that teaches us about animals that might not be cute and cuddly on the outside but are fascinating and lovable on the inside. Highly recommended for school and classroom libraries as well as for any animal-loving reader of any age.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Gorgeous artwork!!!

A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures: An Illustrated Encyclopedia
By Sami Bayly
This book has such terrific artwork! I borrowed this book from the library but now that I have seen the art, I really want to buy it! Truly amazing and gratifying! The information on each animal is awesome too! A great animal lovers delight!

[Nostalgia Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated mini-encyclopedia of unique, curious, odd, and otherwise awesome creatures! Each animal gets a two page spread with info about it including where it lives, what it eats, and a size comparison with a human, all framing Bayly’s incredibly life-like and gorgeous illustrations! She presents the facts in a way that encourages kids to appreciate the animals, and not judging them just by their weird appearances. I also love the “texture” that is printed on the page; it always adds a feeling of a real, aged proper guidebook to the text, and makes the whole thing that much more adventuresome and interesting. I was an exploration and animal nerd as a kid (still am) and I would have loved having this on my shelf; it would have been a personality and fun-factoid shaper for sure! If you have kids who are fascinated by weird stuff and animals then definitely get them this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy to review!

(Cross posted on my blog.)

[roxi Net · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly one of the coolest/weirdest books I've come across, A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures is nothing but fun (and information of course). Beautifully illustrated and laid out, it was fun to learn of odd animals with 'Fun Facts, Where They Live, Close Relations, What They Eat, and Conservation Status'. I'm not surprised one bit to realize I hadn't heard of many of these animals (and still kinda doubt they exist but I did do some research because. Mind. Blown.) and I think this book would make a great gift for that special person in your life. Truly. I can think of a couple of family members ('what to get when they have everything') that would get a kick out of this book . I'll be referencing this for quite some time and can only thank the author for such an odd and fun read. #ACuriousCollectionofPeculiarCreatures #NetGalley

[Grettel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This book is a vibrant ode to the creatures in our planet. The illustrations throughout the book are stunning, almost like very colorful versions of Victorian-era natural history drawings. It is so evident that the animals were depicted with so much appreciation to their peculiarities that readers would not be able to avoid being mesmerized by some of these wonderful creatures. The facts and descriptions about the animals were illuminating while concise and organized.

[Nemo Nemo · Rating 4 out of 5]

AUTHOR

Sami Bayly is a natural history illustrator based in Newcastle. She loves all things, weird and wonderful. She finds the beauty and importance of all animals regardless of their appearance, and hopes to share her appreciation with others.

Sami’s first book, The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals, won the Children’s Indie Book of the Year Award. It was shortlisted for the CBCA Eve Pownall Award, the ABIA Book of the Year for Younger Children, and the Australian Book Design Awards. It was longlisted for the ABA Booksellers’ Choice 2020 Book of the Year Awards.

SYNOPSIS

Weird and wonderfully strange creatures are presented on a double page spread per subject. Utilizing an infographic style, the page layout includes a one-page description and a page covering the particulars of each creature; such as: where they live, what they eat, their conservation status and fun facts.

The key illustrations are large, colorful and life-like. In addition, there are pen and ink sketches depicting the creature in focus from different perspectives. There are also infographics depicting an average sized man next to each creature to allow the viewer to establish scale. All of these descriptive annotations are displayed on a velum colored background.

There are 61 examples of curious creatures continued within the 128 pages. What follows are a few examples of the fascinating animals, fish, birds and invertebrates that you can find in Bayly’s enchanting work:

RETICULATED STARGAZER – Dactyloscopus Foraminosus Blanchardi

This diminutive fish is literally nightmare fuel. The Reticulated Stargazer projects a terrifying countenance enhanced by the full page color image. With large eyes protruding from the top if its head as it languishes half-buried in sand and a mouth full of sharp dirty teeth the thought of an encounter with this mini monster is sobering. At only 3 inches long it blends skillfully in to the environment. This is quite alarming when you realize that this tiny terror can deliver a shock of 50 volts from between its eyes or inject you with venom from two spines on their back. If all this were not disgusting enough the Reticulated Stargazer has the propensity to burp back the scales of it’s last meal.

Consider for a moment that these were the fun facts about this fish.

SARCASTIC FRINGEHEAD – Neoclinus Blanchardi

Looking like an off-world monster with a disarticulated hinged jaw, the Sarcastic Fringehead is a vision from a horror movie. So violent it attacks fishermen who as a result avoid them like the plague. They enjoy the luxury of having few natural threats, and it is thought that this is partially the reason for their aggression. Fortunately, these omnivores are deep sea fish who consume squid, plankton, crustaceans, and small fish. Their habitat is off the Coast of California and Mexico 195 feet down in the depths.

TARDIGRADE – Tardigrada

Tardigrade are better known as the Water Bear. They are invertebrates that live three months to two and a half years. However, if they become dormant, they can last as long aa thirty years in stasis. Some are hermaphroditic; also known as intersex, while others can clone themselves. Tardigrade’s can survive in temperature extremes as well as being capable of cryptobiosis. They are cannibalistic and can also use tubes to suck juices from moss, algae, and bacteria. They are survivors and have been around for over 500 million years.

These are just a few of the 61 other animals depicted. You might find: The Aye-Aye, the Hairless Chinese Crested Dog, The Blob Fish, The Purple Pig-Nosed Frog or the Naked Mole Rat equally as fascinating as I did.,

CONCLUSION

A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures is a fascinating, entertaining and fun journey through the world of strange, exotic and captivating animals. It is packed full of interesting knowledge about the private lives of the most bizarre wildlife. A perfect excursion for children wanting to discover the fringe world of fantastic and unique critters.

In my opinion children would enjoy this publication. It is containing scientifically based information set in easy digestible chunks for young, hungry minds. I feel assured that A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures would stimulate and entertain but more importantly that it will encourage further research. When learning is fun children are driven to want to learn more and this is the true strength of Bayly’s scintillating work. It is simply a joy to the eye and the mind equally.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank Sami Bayly, NetGalley and The Experiment for affording me the opportunity to review A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures.

[J · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am a fan of animal books, especially if they can teach me something more than what I already know. As such I usually have much higher standards for books that are meant to educate rather than just allow this slide and this book has me rankled.

First of all the concept behind it is rather great since it allows the reader to get to know a bunch of peculiar creatures, which is a much better upgrade than the ugly descriptive originally given to the book. Furthermore the author does bring up a great point in explaining that in looking at these creatures and getting to know them we may actually come to find that we can be more receptive of all lives around - no matter how unique they may be.

Another thing that I enjoyed about this particular book is the fact that it does include the Latin name for each species and gives a pronunciation guide to the reader. This is more than most other animal books can offer to readers who just allow readers to thrash around with the pronunciation while hoping that they have it right, that no one is listening and/or looking it up on a pronunciation guide whether it is from the web or Youtube.

Furthermore the book provides its information in quite easy-to-read and understand paragraph on a two-page spread while the animals themselves are listed alphabetically. One page is given to a brightly colored portrayal of the animal whether factual or infactual while the other provides the reader with information that covers a description, conservation status, diet, location/habitat and fun facts. Some fun facts include collective verbs but unfortunately not much.

To explain the art real quick is the fact that each entry is given the full-scale colored representation, which allows the reader to view the animal. Then there are sketch drawings of the animal or some other additional art added to allow the reader to see different aspects such as the symmetry of like the uakari's face. And this leads me to one of the things that really irked me with this book.

That infamous misrepresentation of the blobfish appears twice - one for its representation on the species page and one at the top of the Introduction. Why are so many fascinated with shoving that for the real fish and if someone wants to argue with me that Sami Bayly didn't know any better that it was the wrong representation than one did she include the actual fish as her sketch drawing? There is no escape that someone knew that she was pushing the wrong face around.

And as if that could have been excused for a one-time slip-up she further goes on to explain that the wild turkey of North America is the focal basic of our Thanksgiving dinners. Although there may be some who throw a wild turkey down as their turkey of choice, the majority of Americans rather prefer their fowl attraction to be the domesticated turkey fattened up on a rather non-native forest/field diet.

Another thing that got my goat is the fact that during her Introduction is she makes mention that exploring all these species makes her realize just how many are threatened, endangered or vulnerable. Then when the reader takes into consideration all the Conservation entries so many seem to be of Least Concern or Unknown.

As such if you are presenting this book to a child for reading do understand there is a bit of a mature theme in one instance although not much when judged against the rest of the book. Also please be aware that not all the information may be factual and that the book is a strong push about the humans being bad when they do appear.

[Colleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the illustrations, the facts/description of the animals, the fun facts, and the pages' layouts. What I did not like was the conservation status sections. The conservation status tells you how well the animals are doing in the wild based on their numbers. High numbers there is no cause of alarm that these creatures will disappear and become extinct. Low numbers means something must be done. Telling why the numbers are low is acceptable, but I had a problem on the phrasing.

Maybe I am being super sensitive the wording and imaging things, but it sounded like humans were painted in a really bad light in the conservation sections, especially for the animals with a status below Least Concern. Yes, humans can go overboard with fishing, hunting, logging, and other activities that could lower animal numbers. Is there way to say that without sounding really negative towards humans? Maybe or maybe not. While that was hard and frustrating to read what really got me annoyed and frustrating were the conservation status sections for the animals that were Not Evaluated or labelled as Least Concern.

Least Concern means that we are not too terribly worry about the status of these animals. Yes, there could be threaten later on, but right now even with current human activity everyone is fine. Yet, there were very few sections where the author created a paragraph about possible problems. I wish there was just blanket statement in the beginning the book about what Least Concern means and what could happen, instead of a paragraph for every animal labelled as Least Concern.

The Not Evaluated or Not Enough Data ones I did not necessarily mind the paragraph, but I did not like speculation that humans could be fault and the animals are endangered in reality. With that said, we come to the Tardigrade.

The Tardigrade is a fascinating animal that I considered to be oddly cute, especially in the illustration (look at it!). I want to highlight three sentences from the Where They Live section, one sentence from Fun Facts, and one sentence from the Not Evaluated section.

Where They Live: "These astonishing creatures are able to survive in conditions that many of us could never dream of. For example, they can handle truly extreme temperatures, from around -455F (-270C), far below freezing, up to the scorching heat of 300F (150C). They've even survived in outer space by placing their bodies into a dormant state known as cryptobiosis."

Fun Fact: "One specimen survived over 30 years in its dormant state."

Conservation Status: "Of course, climate change may endanger the tardigrade."

Do any of these statements not make sense to you? Yes? No? If you answer yes then we are on the same wavelength. If you answer no then reread them. Still not seeing it? Here's a hint: look at what temperatures it can survive in, the dormant state, and the mention about climate change. Think about it. Now what do you think?

Verdict: I like the information, but I think the Conservation Status sections should have been worded differently. Point to the author about using "may," but why was the climate change sentence there?

[Sharon Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, written and illustrated by Sami Bayly, is currently scheduled for release on October 27 2020. This book gives some of the animal kingdom's more overlooked animals a turn in the limelight. Breathtaking scientific illustrations flaunt their unconventional beauty, while fascinating facts about their conservation status, diet, strange quirks, and habitat completes each vivid portrait. The Bornean orangutan, whose immense cheek pads give it a dinner-plate-like face, is the largest tree-dwelling mammal. The red-lipped batfish, alas, is a terrible swimmer, with leg-shaped fins better suited to walking along the seafloor.The mysterious goblin shark, rarely seen by humans, has a long snout and a terrifying flexible jaw to snatch its prey. These are just a few of this stunning encyclopedia's sixty curious creatures living among us who might not be as cute as a kitten but are no less deserving of our love.

A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures is a book that takes some of my favorite quirky animals, and some I have never heard of, and explains them. The illustrations are phenomenal. Even if you did not read a word of the book, he images would be well worth picking it up all on their own. Bayly's artwork is scientifically accurate, but not sterile. The unusual features of each animal is prominent in the illustrations, and they each all seem to have some personality and pride in the stance of each being. I spent my first pass of the book focusing on that art, and have found myself going back to look at some of the images again and again. Now for the text. I thought that each animal profile was very well done. What we know about the animals were shared in an accessible manner, and I like that instead of leaving it at that Bayly made a point of saying when we just have not had enough research or studies done to answer important questions about the animals. I also like the variety of creatures chosen, it was not all the odd animals that seem to find there way onto these kind of books, the blob fish and hellbenders, but there were also animals that might be thought as common, or so recently discovered that I have never heard of them. I was very sad to see how many of these cool creature are endangered, threatened, or close to being in danger. The only complaint I had will be fixed in the print addition, since they had a space saved for my coveted resources in the digital galley I read.

A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures is a book that will be making its way into my personal home library. It is stunning visually, and interesting to read and explore.

[Serene Conneeley · Rating 4 out of 5]

In nature, most species stick to their own kind, but there are some very unlikely combos that have evolved to exist together – and who couldn’t survive without each other. From the sea turtle who’s kept clean by the fish who swim alongside eating the parasites that bug him, and thus getting a feed, to the glossy black cockatoo and the she-oak tree it eats from, in turn spreading the seeds far and wide so the tree survives too; and the fig tree wasp and the Moreton Bay fig tree it lives within in a symbiotic relationship, to the brown-throated three-toed sloth and the sloth moth, who have a… unique… relationship! Exploring 60 of the world’s most peculiar pairs, this wonderful book is a deep dive into nature and the world of mutualism, commensalism and parasitism, and the bizarre relationships of these plants and animals, and how these species rely on each other for their survival. Written and illustrated by amazing Aussie artist Sami Bayly, who also created the fascinating Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals and Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Dangerous Animals, this is a gorgeous hardcover book you’ll treasure forever.
You can check out her books, prints, greeting cards, colouring book and teachers resources at her website, www.samibayly.com/shop

[V · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures is an engrossing read - I started to page through and wound up pretty much reading it cover to cover (I admit I skipped the eels). Extreme readability and immeasurably fascinating content paired with scientifically accurate paintings make Peculiar Creatures an undeniable win. I cannot praise it highly enough. Whether your child (or you) wants a general overview, fun trivia, a rating of conservation status, or a size comparison with a human, you've got it here. Sami Bayly is a natural historian whose interest in the peculiar benefits everyone who picks up this book, and I encourage everyone to pick it up. If you are even remotely interested in the animal kingdom, this if for you. And if you aren't, I would be surprised if it doesn't spark your interest.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An encyclopedia-style work, Bayly looks at animals in the natural world that are particularly odd looking. She has a color drawing of each with a silouette comparing it's size with either a human figure or a human hand. She then gives some basic facts about the animal, it's size, habitat, food supply and includes it's endangered status. The latter range from critically endangered to not at risk. So she has not chosen only from among endangered species. She includes other fun facts about the animal such as how fast it can run, what it's wing spread is, it's life span, and what a group of the animal is called.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My kids loved this book! My 6 year old is animal obsessed and loves things like the Wild Kratts, Ranger Rick, and Planet Earth. Even though she is an animal "expert," there were creatures in here she had never seen. The illustrations are beautiful, and there's plenty of facts to be educational. I will be buying this in print for my kids to add to their library.

ARC provided for review

[Patricia Buzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book! The title really describes it perfectly: it’s a collection of animal oddities that’s not only beautifully illustrated but educational too! The author talks about the habitat, behavior, food preferences, conservation status, and quirky fun facts of each animal.

[Tara]

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. An interesting book about peculiar animals, what they eat, where they live, and how you can help them. Kids will love this.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I lived learning about these unique animals. How amazing they were. Many I'd never heard of. If your kid loves nature or animals this is a great book.

[Erin Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is amazing! It describes weird, quirky and unusual animals. Lots of details and beautiful images. My son loves when I read this to him.

[Melvyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

You're not different, you're special!

Opening this guide, I wasn't sure how the creatures were going to be portrayed, but I must say, I was mind-blown. The illustrations are absolutely stunning. The book itself really gives the feel of an 18th or 19th century naturalist sketchbook. I could almost imagine Darwin on the HMS Beagle drawing up some of these creatures, wondering what else the world had to offer.

Each animal is portrayed as authentically as possible, and sometimes nature can be creepy. Almost too creepy, and I can't help but wonder if some of the illustrations are a little too nightmarish for a child. However, I do feel it is a great way to show that nature is beautiful in many ways and isn't always aesthetically pleasing. Ugly or scary are opinions, not facts. It's important to teach young minds that different isn't bad, both in the way things look and the way they behave. This publication doesn't only show how "ugly" some animals are, but also tells the stories about various reproductive strategies in nature such as sequential hermaphroditism or asexual reproduction. I think this it is an important message for the younger generation growing up in a society that is aiming to be more accepting of sexuality in all of its forms: it's all natural.

Going back to the biology aspect of this book, I find the conservation message very clear. It will hopefully help people see how alarming some of the effects humans have on nature. We always hear about rhinos, pandas, or tigers becoming critically endangered or even on the brink of extinction, but they are not the only ones affected. Most living things on the planet are suffering the effects of climate change or pollution and what-not. Another very important message for future generations. Who knows, perhaps a young child will read this book and grow up to be the person who saves the saiga antelope.

This is the kind of books that I would have in my bedroom as a child, amongst dinosaur encyclopaedias, animal reference books, or 'Ripley's Believe It or Not!' publications, and I hope other kids will enjoy having this on their bookshelves as well

[Bonni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Received as a gift for my 8 year old. We read a page a night and we're both enjoying it. Would make a good gift for a kid or even adult (a good coffee table book). Great illustrations and fun facts all around-- presented in a way that I can remember and repeat some of those fun facts.