What's Smaller Than a Pygmy Shrew?

By Robert E. Wells
Paperback : 32 Pages
January 1, 1995

A companion book of sorts to Is a Blue Whale the Biggest Thing There Is?, What's Smaller Than a Pygmy Shrew? looks at the very very small. Starting with the minutly sized, 3inch long Pygmy Shrew, it works its way down to tiny bugs, single celled organisms, and even the cells and their individual components.

Once again intended for children around age 4-8, the book attempts to explain difficult terms and concepts in a cutely illustrated format, with examples and comparisons. I never before would have thought to teach five-year-olds about quarks, but this book certainly tries hard to make these microscopic particles and parts understandable and accessible to those of a young age.

Overall it is a fun and informative book that I would recommend to anyone with a child interested in science, or just to anyone in general. It's been a few years since I've taken a microbiology class, and this actually worked pretty well for a very basic refresher! A glossary in the back provides child-friendly definitions for all of the terms covered.

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