Steve Backshall's Deadly 60

by Steve Backshall

Steve Backshall, adventurer and British TV personality, embarked on his most daring adventure a six-month voyage to six continents in search of 60 deadly creatures. Here they are?and these color photographs bring readers as close as theyd ever want to get to such dangerous game as Africa's Black Mamba, a snake whose lethal bite can kill an adult human in 15 minutes, and the mysterious, carnivorous Ghost Bat of northern Australia. The book serves as a companion to Backshall's popular TV series, and captures the most remarkable techniques and fearsome weapons in the animal kingdom.

Genres: Nonfiction

128 pages, Hardcover

First published February 2, 2010

Reviews

[Jonathan Ayres · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fans of predators and the natural world in general will not be disappointed. Plenty of unusual animals and fascinating facts that terrify and inspire in equal measure.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a nine year old boy who professes to hate reading - so for me it is already a winner! Steve Backshall's Deadly 60 accompanies the CBBC television series of the same name, and follows wild life expert Steve Backshall on a round the world trip to document sixty deadly creatures. It is full of exciting close up encounters with a plethora of species from the Brown Bear to the Mantis Shrimp, the Black Mamba to the Alligator Snapping Turtle. The photography is fantastic - pictures of the Deadly 60 adourn every page and convey the beauty, magnificence and danger of the natural world.

This book fires an interest for science, geography and the natural world. It is packed full of facts about the animals and their habitats, and the survival mechanisms that they employ. Deadly 60 gives each of the creatures a rating for their deadliness according to their size, speed and weapons. It is highly informative and well written.

Deadly 60 also fires the imagination. Backshall is sharing his adventure with us - he is a modern day action hero and his encounters with the animals are very exciting.

Children across key stage two can enjoy looking at the pictures in this book, but as the text is reasonably challenging, I would recommend this book for children aged nine upwards. This is a book that I would never have chosen myself, so it was great to receive the recommendation. If a children's television series results in a high quality, well thought out book that inspires children to read then I am happy with that!

[Ming Wei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant rich in detail book, about dangerous creatures that live upon our planet, i found this book very interesting, and learnt so much from within its page, this book is perfect for me, to find new characters to places within my own Ocean World science-fiction series. I found this book very influencial, and takes pride of place in my favourites list. the deadly 60 is a great TV series, but also a great book. Well written, loved it, we produced, good paper quality, great front cover. My favourite book of 2020. Well worth reading for any person interested in wild-life, sea-life, really eye opening.

[Aileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book to accompany the TV series, this lists the creatures that made it onto the list in terms of how deadly they are to other species. Each creature has a two page spread with photos and details listing why they made it onto the list, some quite surprising, others you would expect. It’s been a while since I watched the TV show, so this was a good reminder. The only criticism was that the coloured backgrounds to the pages were sometimes a little too dark.