reviews:

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“Euphonic rhyming couplets sing in praise of cicadas alongside details about their life cycle in this vibrant picture book. Beginning pages present purply yellow nymphs waiting underground until they surface and molt. “A newly emerged adult cicada looks almost alien,” describes one straightforward snippet, while rhymes elaborate: “Plump cicada, milky-white,/ gleams and glistens in the light./ Veins turn orange, soon complete./ Blue-black body. Clawlike feet.” Feeding (and being fed on), flying, and mating proceed until the cycle begins anew. The insects’ forms and beady red eyes aptly fill the pages of Lucas’s bold artwork, which bursts with chromatic coloring and geometric layers. Conveying the volume of males’ distinctive songs to the bugs’ innate clumsiness, Fliess informs while maintaining a light, adoring tone that reveals cicadas’ remarkableness. A glossary and author’s note conclude.”

—Publishers Weekly, starred review

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“From their beginnings as nymphs below ground, this exciting adventure shows the cicada life cycle and I love it! Large text shares a narrative story: “To the surface, up they go. No one tells them. They just know. Gripping tight for one last change. Split. Pop! Wriggle. Looking strange.” Smaller text with informational facts peppers the pages, too. “Cicadas can be as noisy as a lawnmower, motorcycle, or chainsaw.” This impressive book will appeal to all readers and parents."

—Imagination Soup's Best Children's Nonfiction Books of 2023