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From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

When it comes to methods of torture, the insect world is quite accommodating. Victims can, so to speak, pick their poison, from the merely painful to the downright deadly, the mildly horrific to the out-and-out dangerous. Creeping, crawling, slithering, stalking insects that bite, spray, ooze, and sting use these weapons of mighty destruction to snag a meal, slay an enemy, or seduce a mate sometimes all at once. Ranging from verdant South American jungles to Manhattan's cold concrete canyons, Stewart amusingly but analytically profiles the baddest bugs around in quick but attention-grabbing snapshots of little creatures that pack a lot of punch. Bed bugs and bookworms, rat fleas and filth flies all come under Stewart's curious gaze as she exposes their evil habits and lethal charms. No alarmist setting out to stoke preexisting phobias, Stewart shares her natural fascination with the insect world to help readers recognize both the threats and the wonders that could be lurking in corner crevices or come wafting in on the next gentle breeze.--Haggas, Carol Copyright 2010 Booklist