This is a short, illustrated guide of cephalopods. I’m not sure who the target audience is exactly, because it would be easy for a young child to follow but gives enough information for grownups. I read every book I can find about animals, octopuses being one of my favorite species, and this volume was entertaining and illuminating. At first, I was a little disappointed that there were no photographs, but I was very impressed when I compared Giulia De Amicis’ gorgeous drawings to photos on the internet. They are almost identical, and yet more elegant. Yes, the background is lost, but the illustration seems to bring all the different characteristics to the forefront. The brief text accompanying every species is very informative and I especially loved the catalog section at the end, with all the details about these creatures, including their size (with a handy comparison to humans) and fun facts. A solid read for nature lovers.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/Chronicle Books | Princeton Architectural Press.

This book and beautifully illustrated and full of easy to digest facts about these fascinating creatures. I love the way each animal is laid out in a visual reference card to make it very easy to compare and get a grasp of just how big or how small they are.

My pre-schooler is currently obsessed with Sea Monsters - Octopus and Squid and Cephalopods! We found several old books in a library booksale that get lots of love in our house. When I saw this book, I knew he would get a lot of enjoyment in it as well!

We really like the full page images of the many unique octopuses followed by information about them. There are far more varieties than we ever imagined! We enjoy the beautiful drawings, but I do wish there were photos as well.

I will say, this book is very long. If you have a young fan of octopuses, be prepared to paraphrase so you can maintain their expected page-turning speed to get to as many pictures as possible!

uch a fun and easy read! It’s perfect for casual marine enthusiasts of a variety of ages. The information is mostly surface level and quick and if you’re looking for a more textbook type description of these animals this book may not be what you’re looking for. The art is a great aspect, especially given how hard some of these species are to catch on camera. It really helps bring these chaotic looking looking creatures to life!

My only qualm is that I’d love more information! The authors drop some really cool facts and then don’t expand on them. I feel like I could have read a whole chapter on the dreams of octopus!

This was such a fun informative book about 🐙 and other sea creatures. The illustrations were so beautiful and I found the jargon wasn't to worry so you can easily follow along.

I found this to be a nice read, nothing with too much jargon. It's a great introduction into cephalopods.

The comparison charts at the end of the book were a great way to see all of the information about the various animals, such a size and locations found. The illustrations throughout are stunning. I also enjoyed the fun facts sprinkled within the stories. An example being that the flamboyant cuttlefish is sometimes referred to as an orchid because of its beauty and movement.

This was such a fabulous read! I love learning about something that I already know a good amount about. The illustrations are stunning. I plan to get this for students to use during our marine life unit. It was amazing! Thank you!

A very cute, informative book that wants to teach readers about a variety of cephalopods.

This short book started with a foreword from the director of My Octopus Teacher, and then moved onto a short section on basic facts about cephalopods like their unique features and what marine creatures are considered cephalopods, then moved onto the main section where it introduced different species of cuttlefish, nautilus, squids, and octopuses (not octopi, according to this book) with fun facts and an illustration for each one. The end had a catalog of each species introduced along with further reading and a glossary.

The illustrations were lovely and captured the colors of each creature and unique features. I’m not sure what the intended audience is because the writing didn’t feel intended for children but the descriptions for each species was pretty brief (no longer than a page). I could imagine this as like a coffee table book. I loved the illustrations, but I would have loved a photo if available just to be able to compare.

Great if you’re interested in cephalopods, or if you just want to learn something new!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC!

I absolutely love cephalopods. They’re some of my favorite animals so when I saw this for download on Netgalley I had to read it.

This is a very good little book. It has three sections to it. The first is general information about cephalopods, the third is little paragraphs about specific ones with artistic renderings, and the third is scientific information about the species talked about in the second section.

All of the sections are very informative. I knew about going into this but I can see how things good for people just starting to learn about the animals. The second and third sections especially. It had a lot of good information about each animal. (I especially like they included my personal favorite, the vampire squid).

Overall I just loved this. Highly recommend for animal lovers and nature/ocean lovers especially. Good for all ages.

I thought this book was a great introduction to a variety of cephalopod species. I loved the illustrations of each species. I learned so much about the cephalopod species. I loved the bite size information on the species.

A colorful and easy to follow book about many different types of life one would find beneath the sea.

Octopuses are my favorite animal and I will take any opportunity to learn more about them. I thought this book was a great introduction to a variety of cephalopod species. I loved the illustrations of each species and appreciated the overview of each species in the back of the book. I'm glad there were references and further reading in the back of the book, and I look forward to picking up additional books about cephalopods. I would happily purchase this book. If I saw this on someone's coffee table, I would eagerly pick it up.
While I thought the book fulfilled its purpose, I personally found it lacking in some areas. I would have enjoyed the book more if there was more information about each species instead of one to two paragraphs. I would have also appreciated photographs of each species (when possible) in addition to the illustrations.
If you've read this book and want to learn more about specific species, I have to books I highly recommend. The first is "The Soul of an Octopus" by Sy Montgomery which focuses predominantly on Giant Pacific Octopuses. The second is a children's nonfiction called "The Lady and the Octopus" by Danna Staaf which covers the life of Jeanne Villepreux-Power who researched the Great Argonaut and invented aquariums in the process.

I sat and read this in one sitting. I love, love, love books like this. The illustrations weren't quite my style, but they definitely will be for others! I loved small blurbs about certain animals and for years now I'm been fascinated with octopuses and squid. There were kinds in this book that I never knew existed. The main one that stuck with me aside from the Japanese flying squid, which I need to see, was the vampire squid. So cute yet so scary. The cover on this book is gorgeous and immediately drew me in. I will be recommending this book for purchase at my store, and I will likely be picking up a hard copy when it comes out!

I have always been fascinated by the ocean and everything in it, so to get to absorb even more was amazing. All information was incredibly well written and wasn’t repetitive. The artwork in this book as well as on the cover was truly beautiful and I will be purchasing a physical copy to display when it becomes available.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book is full of information about sea life. It is full of facts and pictures.

I really enjoyed this book! It had a lot of good information and was interesting. I also enjoyed the pictures.