13 Ways to Eat a Fly

Other books might concentrate on the life cycle of a fly – not so this one, which focuses on the death part only, and the various ways it can be gobbled up. You might think of how a spider wraps it in silk before eating, or perhaps a venus fly trap, or perhaps even homo sapiens on a pushbike getting an unintended snack, but there are several other ways here too. One spider sails across water using its anatomy; a bat does a horizontal slam-dunk with its. And slowly and surely the spread of flies we start with get diminished.

I don't think it's a perfect book, however, even if it is still good fun. I don't think the target audience would need the first half of the Latin binomial for everything we're seeing the demise of. It takes great efforts to rhyme (and quite cleverly, too) then breaks off to offer a narration for each image so we know what's what. It feels disjointed when it brings human consumption of flies into things, then pretends to be a guide for animals on what to look for and where in their flies of choice. So it is a little on the higgledy-piggledy side, like a fly, it is zippy and fast-moving, like a fly, and doesn't last that long – like, er, well, a fly. It would be a good choice for a school library shelf, but perhaps a little too off-curriculum and quirky to fully justify its place. For what I got out of it, and for the artistic talent of the creators, four stars.

I read this book with my seven year old daughter. I found this book to be enjoyable. I imagined it would be just a silly book about flies. But it was actually rather informative and educational. I found myself actually learning a lot not only about flies, but about the creatures that eat them. What I found most surprising was that there are currently companies working on production of food products actually made from flies. Go figure. That wasn’t a way to eat a fly that I was expecting. Lol. Overall a good read and I would actually recommend it not only to parents but to teachers, as it is very informative. I would have probably given it five stars though if it was a bit more of a “fun” read, like I was expecting.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Charlesbridge Publishing for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This is a children's nonfiction book. This is a perfect example showing that nonfiction does not have to be boring! This is a unique counting down perspective of what eats a fly. It is colorful and has fun and unusual facts about flies and what eats them. Probably not for everyone, but I quite enjoyed it! I would dump the Latin but maybe there are some kids who like that. 4.5 stars

13 Ways to Eat a Fly is a fun backward counting book that would integrate with science and counting units. I'm sooooooooo relieved it was written in narrative form and not rhyme! I plan to blog about this book in 2021 on my website.

it's a fun illustrated picture book for kids who love nature topic. I think this talks about food chain. A fly can be some animal's delicious dinner. It is a nonfiction book, correct?

Fun illustrations and educational text will lure even the youngest aspiring naturalist or scientist.

This is an interesting book for kids interested in bugs! It's an interactive read with cool creepy crawly illustrations and lots of flies to count.
Many thanks to Charlesbridge and NetGalley for the advance copy.

I really enjoyed this book as an adult and thought that the illustrations were lovely.

It is a great book to learn about predators and prey told through the encounters that a group of flies have! My daughter is three and learning to count and learning her numbers at the moment and this is far too advanced for her but it would be one that she would be able to pick up when she was a little older to get more out of it – she loved the fact it was about insects though as she is a budding nature tot and loves all things wild and outdoors!

It is 4 stars from me for this one – lovely images and one for younger children to grow in to!

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book reads so much like fiction that kids won't even realize they are learning something. It is so witty and fun. I loved the illustrations, the way it was set up, and the "nutrition content" at the end was too funny. I highly suggest this unique read.

This counting book is marvelous for several reasons. First of all, the fact that it counts down instead of up like most counting books (because it is subtraction). The science and fun "icky" factor that kids love are also wonderful!

This is the cutest counting book!! It can be used at home or in classroom!! I loved the illustrations and it felt like you were outside.

Super cute book that showcases 13 different flies!

This is a great read to show why some bugs we might consider insignificant are actually really important parts of the food chain.

Lots of facts delivered in a kid friendly way.

Added bonus is counting down from the number 13! There’s an opportunity to count the flies on each page, and also demonstrate subtraction as we lose one fly at a time as you read.

Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

I thought this nonfiction picture book was adorable. It helps a kid learn to count (backwards from 13) and learn about different type of flies, specifically on who eats them and how they die (instead of the usual life cycle). It was educational, without being boring (which is usually my issue with nonfiction). The illustrations were full of colour and beautiful. I hope it gets translated to French so I can buy it for my school’s library.

13 Ways to Eat a Fly is being published by Charlesbridge Publishing. I’m confused about the publication date though. Goodreads indicated it came out on December 1st, 2020, NetGalley says it will be out on February 16th, 2021 and I can’t find it on the Charlesbridge Publishing website, so it’s either already out or it will be soon?!

This book is delightfully gross and kids will love it. The illustrations will generate lots of conversations and readers will never look at flies the same again. Entertaining and educational for all ages!

This is the kind of book that young kids, especially boys love. 13 WAYS TO EAT A FLY is a fascinating introduction for little kids to entomology, food chains, and the life cycle of flies. There are thirteen different species of flies shown and 13 different predators. I learned that some flying insects are classified as flies that I did not realize. The book is presented in a bit of a gross and humorous way. Some of the information was cool (grandson's word) but gross. Can you imagine using your eyeballs to push a fly down your throat? The reader and listener in this case will learn how some predators catch and eat their prey. The predators include spiders, water striders, sand wasps, crab spiders, trout, brown bats, six-spotted fishing spiders, and even humans who sometimes eat or swallow them by accident. Of course my grandson was a bit worried about flies whose become zombified by fly eating fungi, but I explained it is not like in the movies or games he has seen. The illustrations are wonderful. They are done in a cartoon fashion, but that does not take away from the facts being presented. Each two page spread shows closeups of the flies, and shows the predators in the act of catching and/or eating its prey. It certainly held my grandson's interest. The end of the book also shows some humor, with its guide to fine dining. I think I learned as much as my grandson with this book. I definitely recommend this one to anyone, families, schools, public libraries and especially as a gift for those bug lovers you know.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. Kids love gross and disgusting things like flies and will find this book funny and interesting too.