The Book

The book An Inordinate Fondness for Beetles contains specific information about the anatomy, development, and life cycles of beetles around the world; chronicles their 250-million-year evolution; and traces human fascination with beetles throughout history. Answering questions ranging from "How many beetles are there?" (estimates range from 350,000 to 8 million species) to "Where do beetles live?" (virtually every place imaginable) displaying more than 120 stunning full-color photographs and black-and-white drawings.

We cannot reproduce the entire book here, or else no one would buy it, and besides there are copyright agreements! But hopefully there is enough included as an introduction to each chapter that you will be interested to pursue the study of beetles and may decide to add this book to your library.

Visit the sections of the book or read snippets of past reviews via the image map to the left.