The Life of the Spider by Jean-Henri Fabre

The Life of the Spider Reviews

• 
  Horia

  As someone who has mild arachnophobia, I enjoyed reading this book.
  
  It presents spiders from an objective perspective: they're not scary, they're wild animals (predators, to be more precise; and they're very good at it). Their instincts are geared towards about eating, mating and staying alive. Despite their size, they should be respected and treated with care, as you would any predator.
  What I like enormously is that the author proposes and does experiments (fueled by curiosity on spider behaviour). I found them insightful and they stimulated my imagination to ask Google more questions about spiders.
  
  A bit too detailed at certain moments (I skipped some sections), this is definitely a great read if you want to understand this scary insect.
• 
  Roger

  Fabre was France's preeminent 19th century naturalist, and this compendium of his writings on spiders is unsurpassed. His description of the solar-powered flights of fledgling spiderlets is some of the most fantastic nature writing on earth.
• 
  Sonja

  a bit repetitive/long winded - but the ‘gentleman scientist’ voice is charming and I learned some interesting Spider Facts.
• 
  Sally

  Fabre is a fascinating man, and he writes in a beautiful way about the spiders he's observed. My daughter and I were amazed at the things he came up with to try regarding the spiders and their lifestyles: changing their webs, switching egg sacs, etc. It seemed rather cruel in the name of 'science'! He has an interesting regard for the creatures, admitting their lack of intelligence while admiring other traits. I read this book on the iPad, and wished there were photos of the spiders he described, because it would have added a lot to the text.
• 
  Autumn Lord

  Extremely interesting experiments and insight into the lives and minds of our favorite backyard bugs.
• 
  Becky Hintz

  Surprisingly, this was a big favorite with the kids--archaic language and all. Rather than fearing spiders, they are now plotting to capture some of our more impressive neighbors for closer observation. The author's descriptions of his close, patient study helped turn my children into little naturalists. Very glad we tackled this one!
• 
  Dawn

  Details, not dry facts but observations gathered so carefully and then presented as a beautiful web, get the reader up and close to a few types of spiders native to the author’s neighborhood. Through these types, we learn how they build their homes, how they catch their food, how they mate, and how they raise their young. The scientist compares and contrasts his specimens, whether out in the field or in his spider zoo. Although we may have never considered filling our days with seeking out the haunts of our local spiders to say nothing of filling countless notebooks with our careful notes; this book will help us to marvel when we consider the way spiders utilize their resources, and the matter-of-fact geometrical presentation of their traps.
• 
  SofiaTorn

  ”The Spider that showed me the exodus in all its magnificence is known officially as Thomisus onustus, WALCK. Though the name suggest nothing to the reader's mind, it has the advantage, at any rate, of hurting neither the throat nor the ear, as is too often the case with scientific nomenclature, which sounds more like sneezing than articulate speech. Since it is the rule to dignify plants and animals with a Latin label, let us at least respect the euphony of the classics and refrain from harsh splutters which spit out a name instead of pronouncing it.”
  
  Lmao this quote is golden.
  
  Beatifully written book though some experiments conducted by the author felt a bit cruel.
• 
  Susan

  Fascinating. I enjoyed this book about spiders, and I learned a lot.
  
  “[The] Spider is well worth studying, apart from any scientific reasons; but she is said to be poisonous and that is her crime and the primary cause of the repugnance wherewith she inspires us. Poisonous, I agree, if by that we understand that the animal is armed with two fangs which cause the immediate death of the little victims which it catches; but there is a wide difference between killing a Midge and harming a man.”
• 
  Will Grogan

  Quaint, superbly old fashioned, yet insightful and full of wonder and curiosity for the natural world. Something that mixes the childlike wonder and fascination of the world with the probing and knowledge hungry essence of science.
  Jean-Henri Fabre is the naturalist we all want to be when imagining a life in the field, studying and exploring the world.
• 
  Rachel

  I do not like spiders, but Fabre did, and therefore this book is fascinating. He describes several different spiders found commonly around his home, questions he wondered about them, and observations/experiments that answered his questions.
• 
  Michelle Fournier

  Read parts of it with my kids for school. It was pretty interesting and well written…just not enough to continue reading about All the spiders with so many other things to read as well. But a great read all the same.
• 
  Jessica

  This was something else. It focused on Europeaan spiders and the experiments Fabre did on them to study them, which gave me the weirds and sads. The illustrations are magnificent and definitely the reason to check out the book. Very flowery Victorian prose as well.
• 
  Roopa

  Best impulse purchase I've ever made at a used bookstore. Currently my favorite book to open to a random page and read for a few pages before bedtime. also lovely to read out loud, it has a really soothing, lilting rhythm to it. Everyone should love something as much as JH Fabre loves spiders.
• 
  Ines

  Inspired from Gerald Durrell
• 
  David Holland

  Wonderful I really enjoyed this. I strongly recommend it, a description about the life of spiders in France. Fabre was an amazing man.
• 
  Elizabeth

  Delightful and well worth reading. Fabre’s language and humor enliven an already intriguing subject. Parents and educators doing nature study with children should not miss this book.
• 
  Courtney Clark

  I can't imagine any author making me care more about these "wee little beasties". Grade A.
• 
  Aoghdan Potter

  It was educational and awesome at the same time. So much i didnt know about spiders........AANNNDDD it mentioned the crab spider in it!!!!Jean-Henri Fabre is a very good writer by the way. You should read it its a very good book and i loved and You will to I SWEAR IT!!!!! :D
• 
  James

  If you have any interest in spiders this is an amaziing volume given when it was written. You will look at these arachnids differently. They are an important piece of the natural mosaic and need to be understood and treated with reverence.
• 
  Elena Druță

  Am citit cu mare plăcere această ”broșurică”, pe care o recomand cu mare plăcere cititorilor care nu văd păianjenii ca pe niște monstruleți; chiar și așa, stilul de a scrie a lui Fabre poate modifica ușor acest lucru.
• 
  Rick Davis

  Great book about spiders. Full review here:
  http://oldeship.blogspot.com/2014/08/...
• 
  Chip

  This is a truly cool book.