Rats!: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

by Richard Conniff

The next time you see a rat you should give it a round of applause. Consider the rats can gnaw through lead, wriggle through a hole the size of a quarter, and survive high doses of nuclear radiation. Rats have also managed to exploit us humans for all we’re worth–we’ve unintentionally provided them with food, shelter, and transportation. And contrary to popular belief, rats are quite clean. Some people keep them as pets. Some even worship them.

Armed with wit and scientific fact, award-winning natural history writer Richard Conniff gleefully delves into the fascinating and impressive world of the rat–one of the most successful animals on earth.

Genres: Nonfiction, Picture Books

40 pages, Library Binding

First published December 10, 2002

About the author

Richard Conniff, a Guggenheim Fellow and winner of the National Magazine Award, is the author most recently of House of Lost Worlds: Dinosaurs, Dynasties, and the Story of Life on Earth. He writes for Smithsonian and National Geographic and is a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times, and a former commentator on NPR's All Things Considered. His other books include The Natural History of the Rich, Swimming with Piranhas at Feeding Time, and The Species Seekers. He lives in Old Lyme, Connecticut.

Reviews

[Nancy Prater · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was entertaining and witty. We learned a lot and had fun, and the pictures and layout were great!

[Tiffany Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful non-fiction book. If you have any reluctant readers, male or female, give them this book. Did you know that a single rat eats twenty or more pounds of food a year? That means that 200 rats can eat an amount of rice that could feed eleven people for a year. Reducing rat populations can save hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of food in impoverished countries. That's definitely "food for thought."

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

LOVED this book. Being a pet rat parent for 20 years, I loved the author's line about dogs bite 3 million people per year when referring to rat bites (which are much lower).

To top it off, he did a nice balance of pet rat discussions and wild rat discussion.

[meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

disgustingly interesting. this picture book is full of amazing facts and photographs all about rats.

[Danica Midlil · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has great pictures and interesting facts! I think it would be a hit with boys and girls who either like rodents or who like to be grossed out!