Book Review: Firefly, Ant and Butterfly by Petra Vijncke

 

 Note: The title of this book has been translated into English by me for the reading comprehension of this blog's viewers as the book itself isn't available in English (yet). The original title reads Vuurvlieg, mier en vlinder.

Do you like bugs? I sure like bugs! More bug non-fiction time!

In this book, Petra Vijncke talks about her passion for bugs, and how she came to appreciate them. After this, she tells us many things about them, including various species, what they eat, how they reproduce, behavior, social structures, their importance to ecosystems, etc.

All of this is presented to the reader in very easily digestible language, and I honestly really appreciate the book for this. It's not that it goes too fast or becomes too complicated or throws too much at the reader: It just feels like a chill non-fiction that's trying to chance the audience's perception of bugs. After all, they don't particularly have a great reputation. 

So I really appreciate that Vijncke here just sits the reader down, talks with a lot of passion about these little beasties and tells us that they're not always something to be afraid of or seen as pests. A noble cause, and the execution is done very well as her passion definitely comes across clearly to the reader and, like mentioned before, the book isn't overly complicated, yet it doesn't talk down to the audience, either. 

Even if this book doesn't end up changing the reader's negative image on bugs, at the very least it is still very educational with many useful facts. I myself already liked bugs going in, but I do recommend this book to people who are hesitant as well because there's definitely something for them to be gained here, whether it's just new information or also a newfound appreciation for the little critters.

I guess something I did want (and was alluded to in the prologue) was the author talking about spiders as they're my favorite arthropods, but obviously that's not what the book is about as it's about insects. It's just that, in the prologue, the author talks about her phobia of spiders, and with the book ending with her coming to a newfound appreciation for insects I hoped she would once again refer to the prologue's spiders and maybe see if she learned to appreciate them as well. But I guess that's either not the case or she just didn't feel the need to touch on it. It just felt a little bit like setup that didn't have a proper payoff, even if of course it's not the main theme of the book itself (that being insects and not spiders). 

Overall this is a great book for those who want to learn more about insects. Read if if you like them and also if you do not, it'll still teach you a lot and maybe even change your mind on them. They're not just nuisances that bite, sting and are pests; they're very interesting little critters who are incredibly important to the environment. 

Rating: 4/5