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Oh, Rats! The Story of Rats and People
Able to claw straight up a brick wall, squeeze through a pipe the width of a quarter, and gnaw through iron and concrete, rats are also revealed in this fascinating book to be incredibly intelligent and capable of great compassion. Weaving science, history, culture, and folklore, awardwinning writer Albert Marrin offers a look at rats that goes from curious to repulsive, horrifying to comic, fearsome to inspiring. Arresting blackand- white scratchboard illustrations with bold red accents add visual punch to this study of a creature that has annoyed, disgusted, nourished, and intrigued its human neighbors throughout the centuries.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published August 17, 2006
16 people are currently reading
447 people want to read
About the author
Albert Marrin
58 books82 followersAlbert Marrin is a historian and the author of more than twenty nonfiction books for young people. He has won various awards for his writing, including the 2005 James Madison Book Award and the 2008 National Endowment for Humanities Medal. In 2011, his book Flesh and Blood So Cheap was a National Book Award Finalist. Marrin is the Chairman of the History Department at New York's Yeshiva University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 100 reviews
November 10, 2009
Who knew what amazing creatures rats are! The author of this book decided to write this after encountering a rat as a young boy while he was playing in lumber at his dad's construction site. After spotting a rat, he ran and ran to get away from this huge frightening creature to realize that the rat never even chased him. This fear inspired him to learn everything there was to learn about rats - and he did!
Rats can scale a brick wall-straight up, they can smell to detect TB by smelling saliva samples, rats love water and can paddle half a mile in the ocean and tread water for 3 days. The book contains any fact you could think of about rats.
These creatures are actually more fascinating than you'd think. The book contains mostly text so I think the book if probably more appropriate for students in grades 4-8.
Rats can scale a brick wall-straight up, they can smell to detect TB by smelling saliva samples, rats love water and can paddle half a mile in the ocean and tread water for 3 days. The book contains any fact you could think of about rats.
These creatures are actually more fascinating than you'd think. The book contains mostly text so I think the book if probably more appropriate for students in grades 4-8.
August 7, 2008
Of all binomial names -- and that includes my favorites, Metasequoia glyptostroboides (for the ancient dawn redwood tree whose shaggy bark resembles shredding by a gang of kitty cats), and Elaeagnus pungens 'Maculata' (the variegated silverberry with the tricky spelling [always appealing to the spelling bee competitor in me])-- of all the possible poetic, funny, and lyrical combinations, the best is that of Rattus rattus. The black rat! (Although just for the record there's also the Rattus norvegicus, the brown rat).
Our outside cats kill about 4 of them every week, so a quick trip to water the hostas can quickly turn into an awful squish under the flip flops. The poor dears! I've given up on burying them, or even transporting them to the trash.
Here's a compendium of rat facts. Perfect for any age, with sweet line drawings and highlighted "Did You Know?" boxes. Did you know: rats can swim 1/2 mile and tread water for 3 hours? they can stand on their hind legs and box with their front paws? they show compassion towards family members less fortunate than they (such as one who's blind, hospicing them throughout their lifetimes)?
Sometimes rats get their tails caught together in one big knot -- it's called a "King Rat", and they ultimately die together in that bunch.
If one rat dies from a poison, the other rats learn from that experience and won't touch the poison.
There are two rats for every person living on this earth. If we learned how to eat rats -- as they do in Ghana, with half the population regularly eating them (better than chicken!) -- starvation might be eliminated.
Oh yes, they're vicious too, and breed disease, but oh my! What a good read!
Our outside cats kill about 4 of them every week, so a quick trip to water the hostas can quickly turn into an awful squish under the flip flops. The poor dears! I've given up on burying them, or even transporting them to the trash.
Here's a compendium of rat facts. Perfect for any age, with sweet line drawings and highlighted "Did You Know?" boxes. Did you know: rats can swim 1/2 mile and tread water for 3 hours? they can stand on their hind legs and box with their front paws? they show compassion towards family members less fortunate than they (such as one who's blind, hospicing them throughout their lifetimes)?
Sometimes rats get their tails caught together in one big knot -- it's called a "King Rat", and they ultimately die together in that bunch.
If one rat dies from a poison, the other rats learn from that experience and won't touch the poison.
There are two rats for every person living on this earth. If we learned how to eat rats -- as they do in Ghana, with half the population regularly eating them (better than chicken!) -- starvation might be eliminated.
Oh yes, they're vicious too, and breed disease, but oh my! What a good read!
June 14, 2011
Humans and rats have been living together for thousands of years. Marrin explains the complications of humans’ relationship with rats, and provides background information on rats.
Oh, Rats! is chock full of information about rats. Marrin begins by describing his first encounter with a rat, explains where rats came from, their behaviors, and finally how rats and humans interact. Marrin writes in a narrative style about each topic in separate chapters and each page includes inset boxes with additional interesting facts about rats. The facts run from interesting (“The Biggest Rodent of All”) to humorous (“White House Rats”). I learned a lot I didn’t know about rats. They are actually very clean, and bathe themselves everyday. Marrin provides a chapter entitled “Yummy Rats” profiling different cultures’ uses of rats as food. He is very respectful of his treatment of the other cultures, and even goes so far as to explain the benefits of eating rat meat. Marrin explains that humans can eat rat meat, but it is our preconceived cultural beliefs about rats that make us think rats are disgusting. To authenticate his work, Marrin provides a bibliography, as well as a list of suggested further reading on rats. Oh, Rats! is illustrated by C. B Mordan, using the color scheme of black, white, red. The red provides a nice contrast to the black and white scratchboard illustrations. The book is fairly short (48 pages) and would be appropriate for younger readers, as well as any reader seeking information about rats.
Oh, Rats! is chock full of information about rats. Marrin begins by describing his first encounter with a rat, explains where rats came from, their behaviors, and finally how rats and humans interact. Marrin writes in a narrative style about each topic in separate chapters and each page includes inset boxes with additional interesting facts about rats. The facts run from interesting (“The Biggest Rodent of All”) to humorous (“White House Rats”). I learned a lot I didn’t know about rats. They are actually very clean, and bathe themselves everyday. Marrin provides a chapter entitled “Yummy Rats” profiling different cultures’ uses of rats as food. He is very respectful of his treatment of the other cultures, and even goes so far as to explain the benefits of eating rat meat. Marrin explains that humans can eat rat meat, but it is our preconceived cultural beliefs about rats that make us think rats are disgusting. To authenticate his work, Marrin provides a bibliography, as well as a list of suggested further reading on rats. Oh, Rats! is illustrated by C. B Mordan, using the color scheme of black, white, red. The red provides a nice contrast to the black and white scratchboard illustrations. The book is fairly short (48 pages) and would be appropriate for younger readers, as well as any reader seeking information about rats.
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December 13, 2016This work is an informational text which includes many pictures and is geared toward children. It discusses the anatomy and behaviors of rats, as well as the relationship that rats have developed with humans over their existence on this earth. In his writing, Marrin has a great example of voice, one of the six traits of writing as set forth by Vicki Spandel. He is concise, lively, and in-depth with his text. Students often assume that just because writing is informational, it must also be monotonous and void of a strong voice. They would be able to use this work as a model of how to be engaging when crafting nonfiction. For a writing activity, students could use Oh Rats! as a mentor text to examine the relationships between humans and other things. Using Kelly Gallagher’s “How Does __________ Influence People’s Behavior?” students would choose a topic, research it, and write a response to the question. They would then repeat the process, examining the question “How Do People Influence _________’s Behavior?” This would allow them to consider reciprocal relationships and multiple points of view, and also to practice writing informational texts in a stimulating voice.
June 19, 2008
Focusing on the historical and current connection between rats and people, Oh Rats! provides the trivia (teeth grow five inches a year) then discusses their influences in areas such as: science, wars, medicine, food production, pest control, and yes, even menus.
Well researched and written. But let's just say it: made me cringe. Some loved the woodcut illustrations, I found them creepy (so perhaps on topic). If you want to know rats, this is your book.
Well researched and written. But let's just say it: made me cringe. Some loved the woodcut illustrations, I found them creepy (so perhaps on topic). If you want to know rats, this is your book.
January 11, 2018
beautiful, amazing read. i hate rats and this book helped me understand these horrible disgusting creatures. the illustrations are stunning. i know a rat and the picture on the cover looks just like him. Oh, Rats! is my favourite book in the whole world. highly recommended.
July 12, 2017
Ellie read for our Family summer reading program. Picked up this book from the Beautiful Feet booth at GHC..krb 7/12/17
February 24, 2018
it was petty good. i got to know more about rats and how they are better than you think. read in class
June 21, 2021
Cute book that highlighted the pros and cons, history, health, and behaviors of wild and captive rats. I only knocked off a star because the language was a bit dry at times, and I would've loved more artwork. :-)
November 13, 2018
"Oh Rats!" Choice Book #6, Quarter 2
"Oh Rats!" is a book about rats and facts about them written by Albert Marrin. Marrin tells the reader everything about rats and their daily life, rat stories, what they eat, the history of the rats, and many more. Rats are creatures that are incredible and can do incredible things, such as claw straight up a brick wall, squeeze through a pipe the width of a quarter, and gnaw through iron and concrete.
In my opinion, I think this book told me everything I needed to know about rats. Parts I really liked was when Marrin told us about how the rats once flooded an entire village by gnawing throw a pipe. I thought that was unbelievably incredible to be able to do that. Also another thing I realized when I was reading this book, this book is very different from other books I have read in the past...when I was reading this, I was never bored. Every time I started getting a little bored, another new and fun fact or a story would come up and I would be exited about it. In conclusion, I think that Marrin did a great job putting all the facts and stories into the book, "Oh Rats!", and I really enjoyed reading this book.
"Oh Rats!" is a book about rats and facts about them written by Albert Marrin. Marrin tells the reader everything about rats and their daily life, rat stories, what they eat, the history of the rats, and many more. Rats are creatures that are incredible and can do incredible things, such as claw straight up a brick wall, squeeze through a pipe the width of a quarter, and gnaw through iron and concrete.
In my opinion, I think this book told me everything I needed to know about rats. Parts I really liked was when Marrin told us about how the rats once flooded an entire village by gnawing throw a pipe. I thought that was unbelievably incredible to be able to do that. Also another thing I realized when I was reading this book, this book is very different from other books I have read in the past...when I was reading this, I was never bored. Every time I started getting a little bored, another new and fun fact or a story would come up and I would be exited about it. In conclusion, I think that Marrin did a great job putting all the facts and stories into the book, "Oh Rats!", and I really enjoyed reading this book.
November 25, 2008
rats and humans have a lot in common. rats belong to a different order or group called rodents. and rodents are the largest group of mammals.rodents have come a long way. about 17 millinoin years old, they used to be considered terrible mice.they used to be the laregest rodent that ever existed....7 feet long; the size of a small rinocerous.
rats are uniquely resilient.upon testing the atomic bomb on one pacific island, everythig died except for the rats hiding in their deep burrows. they were not harmed one bit.
rats are also very smart creatures. when rats go to steal an egg from a chicken coop, one rat grabs the egg, lays upside down, thus carrying the egg with all four paws laying on its back upsidedown while another rat ties its tail to the one while they back their way to the rats' nest as so to not break the egg. brilliant!
rat kings: we think we might know what a rat king is, but no. it is not a super rat that rules all rats. it is when rats live in a nest and get their tails tangled together. their tails become glued together by feces and dried blood and dirt. this tightens permanently and they thus form a rat king, unable to get food alone, they must move together or all members would starve.
humans and rats have never been strangers. there really is a number of rodent hairs and feces allowed in some foods. bon appetit.
there really is a children's song that tells of the worst disease carried by rats:
ring around the rosy
pockets full of posies
ashes, ashes
we all fall down.
this song dealt with the plague.
this plague came from rats!
rats are uniquely resilient.upon testing the atomic bomb on one pacific island, everythig died except for the rats hiding in their deep burrows. they were not harmed one bit.
rats are also very smart creatures. when rats go to steal an egg from a chicken coop, one rat grabs the egg, lays upside down, thus carrying the egg with all four paws laying on its back upsidedown while another rat ties its tail to the one while they back their way to the rats' nest as so to not break the egg. brilliant!
rat kings: we think we might know what a rat king is, but no. it is not a super rat that rules all rats. it is when rats live in a nest and get their tails tangled together. their tails become glued together by feces and dried blood and dirt. this tightens permanently and they thus form a rat king, unable to get food alone, they must move together or all members would starve.
humans and rats have never been strangers. there really is a number of rodent hairs and feces allowed in some foods. bon appetit.
there really is a children's song that tells of the worst disease carried by rats:
ring around the rosy
pockets full of posies
ashes, ashes
we all fall down.
this song dealt with the plague.
this plague came from rats!
March 13, 2009
Albert Marrin went to visit his dad at work at a construction site when he was little, and while he was playing at the site, he encountered a rat. It scared him so much that he ran all the way back to his dad, screaming and crying and falling down over and over again. After his terrible experience, Albert decided to overcome his fear by learning as much as he could about rats (it’s helped…a little), and his research is presented in Oh Rats! – a collection of rat facts and stories. You’ll learn all about these resilient rodents – how they’ve managed to survive all of these years and about their relationship with humans. Fascinating and horrifying at times, this book will keep your attention from start to finish. The rat illustrations (by C.B. Mordan) are rather creepy – they look almost woodcut, in black and white with red and pink accents for eyes, feet, and ears. *shiver*
Did you know? A “king rat” is a bunch of rats that have gotten their tails tangled together in a knot that they can’t work out (often caked with dried feces). The rats in the tangle will die unless other rats feed them – something that the very social rat communities will often do. To learn more about rats, read Oh Rats!
I told people at work all about this book - every rat fact I could remember, and they were deliciously grossed out by it. If I were a 5th grade boy, I'd feel completely triumphant in my new found power to horrify and disgust. *channels her inner 5th grade boy*
Did you know? A “king rat” is a bunch of rats that have gotten their tails tangled together in a knot that they can’t work out (often caked with dried feces). The rats in the tangle will die unless other rats feed them – something that the very social rat communities will often do. To learn more about rats, read Oh Rats!
I told people at work all about this book - every rat fact I could remember, and they were deliciously grossed out by it. If I were a 5th grade boy, I'd feel completely triumphant in my new found power to horrify and disgust. *channels her inner 5th grade boy*
April 22, 2014
from Lee:
Over the years, the cover of Oh, Rats! has attracted my attention. I finally picked it up and was pleased to discovered that it was a pretty quick and enjoyable read even though I am neither drawn to rats nor a particularly voracious reader of nonfiction.
Marrin opens his book anecdotally with a boyhood surprise encounter with a rat a construction site. The author, at seven, was viscerally terrified and ran faster than he had “ever done before or since,” and ends up in tears, covered in cement, in his father’s arms.
'Pa told me not to be afraid. Rats were always around construction jobs… “Take it easy, kid,” he said in that calm way of his. “Learn about them; you'll feel better.”
And I did.’
The author shares many interesting ways these tenacious and omnipresent creatures interact with each other and humans. Do you know what a rat king is? Do you know where rats are considered a delicacy and where their hair and feces are considered an unavoidable “ingredient” in common foods? Do you know which useful jobs they do for humans? The tone, while largely level and conversational, seems at times to suggest that the author might still secretly retain a squeamish bias from childhood. I enjoyed his polymath approach (pulling from scientific, literary, etymological, historical, and cultural sources) to what quickly became a fascinating subject.
C.B. Mordan's black, white, and red illustrations are themselves reason enough to turn the page.
Over the years, the cover of Oh, Rats! has attracted my attention. I finally picked it up and was pleased to discovered that it was a pretty quick and enjoyable read even though I am neither drawn to rats nor a particularly voracious reader of nonfiction.
Marrin opens his book anecdotally with a boyhood surprise encounter with a rat a construction site. The author, at seven, was viscerally terrified and ran faster than he had “ever done before or since,” and ends up in tears, covered in cement, in his father’s arms.
'Pa told me not to be afraid. Rats were always around construction jobs… “Take it easy, kid,” he said in that calm way of his. “Learn about them; you'll feel better.”
And I did.’
The author shares many interesting ways these tenacious and omnipresent creatures interact with each other and humans. Do you know what a rat king is? Do you know where rats are considered a delicacy and where their hair and feces are considered an unavoidable “ingredient” in common foods? Do you know which useful jobs they do for humans? The tone, while largely level and conversational, seems at times to suggest that the author might still secretly retain a squeamish bias from childhood. I enjoyed his polymath approach (pulling from scientific, literary, etymological, historical, and cultural sources) to what quickly became a fascinating subject.
C.B. Mordan's black, white, and red illustrations are themselves reason enough to turn the page.
July 3, 2008
Focusing on the historical and current connection between rats and people, Oh Rats! provides the trivia (teeth grow five inches a year) then discusses their influences in areas such as: science, wars, medicine, food production, pest control, and yes, even menus.
Well researched and written. Lots of interesting facts about rats...how they live, eat, reproduce, carry diseases, help scientists test drugs, etc. Kids will find some things gruesome, gross, ghastly, and fascinating, but in a easy to read, simple format. Sidebars on nearly every page provide additional fun facts. Not long in length, this is a good non-fiction book to keep them interested.
Woodcut illustrations in black, white, and red are somewhat creepy (so perhaps on topic). But let's just say it: some of them made me cringe. If you want to know rats, this is your book.
A bibliography is provided at the end, as well as a short list of recommended reading, including a list of fictional books that feature rats as (good or evil) characters. While this book would be a great read for those interested in rats, it is perhaps not a great choice for report-writing (no index, no clear organization to the content.)
Well researched and written. Lots of interesting facts about rats...how they live, eat, reproduce, carry diseases, help scientists test drugs, etc. Kids will find some things gruesome, gross, ghastly, and fascinating, but in a easy to read, simple format. Sidebars on nearly every page provide additional fun facts. Not long in length, this is a good non-fiction book to keep them interested.
Woodcut illustrations in black, white, and red are somewhat creepy (so perhaps on topic). But let's just say it: some of them made me cringe. If you want to know rats, this is your book.
A bibliography is provided at the end, as well as a short list of recommended reading, including a list of fictional books that feature rats as (good or evil) characters. While this book would be a great read for those interested in rats, it is perhaps not a great choice for report-writing (no index, no clear organization to the content.)
December 15, 2012
This book got off to a great start with a description of the author as a boy of 7 discovering a rat at his father's construction site, causing him to take off running-- through wet concrete. What an image that creates. That spurred his interest in rats.
There are interesting sidelights on almost every spread, although I sometimes found the woodcarving illustrations that accompanying them to be a little muddied.
The author does a great job of including interesting facts, and I can't help but look around, not really in fear, but not really happy that I might see a rat! I learned some new vocabulary words, including "thigmophilic" or touch-loving (gives me the creeps). Among many other things, I learned that they can survive being flushed down a toilet, not that I ever hope to have to do that, even though the author says that they are not really dirty animals. And, who knew that rats could fish? The numbers of people killed due to the plague is imcomprehensible. I didn't know that rats are used to help detect land mines, TB, and other things.
I think this book will be of interest to students, and I plan to get it for our library.
There are interesting sidelights on almost every spread, although I sometimes found the woodcarving illustrations that accompanying them to be a little muddied.
The author does a great job of including interesting facts, and I can't help but look around, not really in fear, but not really happy that I might see a rat! I learned some new vocabulary words, including "thigmophilic" or touch-loving (gives me the creeps). Among many other things, I learned that they can survive being flushed down a toilet, not that I ever hope to have to do that, even though the author says that they are not really dirty animals. And, who knew that rats could fish? The numbers of people killed due to the plague is imcomprehensible. I didn't know that rats are used to help detect land mines, TB, and other things.
I think this book will be of interest to students, and I plan to get it for our library.
February 3, 2008
Did you know that rats can be flushed down a toilet a live? Did you know that rats sometimes fish with their tails? Did you know that a pair of rats could have 359 million descendants in 3 years? Learn these fun facts and many, many more in Albert Marrin's book Oh, Rats!
Illustrations in black, white, and crimson decorate the book and sidebars on nearly every page provide additional fun facts. Although I do like the illustrations, they were a bit distracting because the full-page pictures do not have labels and sometimes I couldn't figure out what they were supposed to be illustrating.
Mr. Marrin provides a bibliography at the end, as well as a short list of recommended reading. The neat thing is that he also includes a list of fictional books that feature rats as (good or evil) characters. I guess I was left wanting a little more from his bibliography and I wish he had included an author's note. But I will say that it's a greatly entertaining book and likely to appeal to kids.
Illustrations in black, white, and crimson decorate the book and sidebars on nearly every page provide additional fun facts. Although I do like the illustrations, they were a bit distracting because the full-page pictures do not have labels and sometimes I couldn't figure out what they were supposed to be illustrating.
Mr. Marrin provides a bibliography at the end, as well as a short list of recommended reading. The neat thing is that he also includes a list of fictional books that feature rats as (good or evil) characters. I guess I was left wanting a little more from his bibliography and I wish he had included an author's note. But I will say that it's a greatly entertaining book and likely to appeal to kids.
February 21, 2009
2007 ALSC Notable
For a non-fiction book it has a nice balance between ramble and research. It can be read cover to cover as an interesting set of facts, which reminds me of books written for early grade school. The combination of historical drawings, photographs, and ephemera reminds me of the current trend in teen non-fiction (and adult coffee table books). It is very appealing overall, I would use portions to be read aloud to younger grades, as an additional material resource with an historical novel, or as a suggestion for an older reluctant reader.
I am not scared of rodents in general so I can't verify for the squeamish but my impression was that the illustrations are less "icky" than I have seen in other books about rodents. It might be a good title for someone who would rather not think about a rat let alone learn more about rats.
For a non-fiction book it has a nice balance between ramble and research. It can be read cover to cover as an interesting set of facts, which reminds me of books written for early grade school. The combination of historical drawings, photographs, and ephemera reminds me of the current trend in teen non-fiction (and adult coffee table books). It is very appealing overall, I would use portions to be read aloud to younger grades, as an additional material resource with an historical novel, or as a suggestion for an older reluctant reader.
I am not scared of rodents in general so I can't verify for the squeamish but my impression was that the illustrations are less "icky" than I have seen in other books about rodents. It might be a good title for someone who would rather not think about a rat let alone learn more about rats.
October 18, 2008
If you're looking for something fun and gross for the upcoming Halloween holidays, look no further! Oh, Rats! has plenty of tidbits both fun and gross about rats. Marrin covers pet rats, rats as food, rats as carriers of disease, and rats as aids to society. The pen and ink (?)illustrations by C. B. Mordan are all done in shades of black, white and red giving them an eerie quality heightened by the red rat eyes that stare out from each picture. This is a very balanced look at rats with Marrin giving equal time to both their good and bad traits. Perfect for upper grade school students and older, Oh, Rats! also includes a bibliography, a list of sources for further exploration and a list of juvenile literature that include rat characters.
March 28, 2017
This book was awesome! The author offers up a complete and concise look at the history of the rats' interactions with mankind.
Take a gander at some of these rat facts:
- Rats can tread water for three days.
- A rat's jaw muscles allow it to bite with the same force as a crocodile.
- They can gnaw through iron and concrete to get at hidden food.
- Rats can smell TNT underground, and have been used to detect buried landmines.
- A rat can "fish" by dangling its tail in water, and wiggling it about to imitate a worm.
Rats are simply amazing. They more than deserve to inherit this planet when we humans have finally made ourselves null and void.
Take a gander at some of these rat facts:
- Rats can tread water for three days.
- A rat's jaw muscles allow it to bite with the same force as a crocodile.
- They can gnaw through iron and concrete to get at hidden food.
- Rats can smell TNT underground, and have been used to detect buried landmines.
- A rat can "fish" by dangling its tail in water, and wiggling it about to imitate a worm.
Rats are simply amazing. They more than deserve to inherit this planet when we humans have finally made ourselves null and void.
September 4, 2018
YAY! This book taught me a lot of cool and interesting facts about rats. It helped me gain more knowledge and understanding of rats, and also I think that this book will be a great book to read if you are going to research rats. This book was obviously non-fiction, so please don't mistake it for a fun fiction book! I really recommend you this book if you are interested in rats, and I'm sure it would be a fun book for you to read.
Overall, I gave this book 3 stars because it had compelling facts that I never knew. I guess this is a pretty high rating for a non-fiction book because I do not like non-fiction books that much.
I hope you read this book and enjoy it 😆
Overall, I gave this book 3 stars because it had compelling facts that I never knew. I guess this is a pretty high rating for a non-fiction book because I do not like non-fiction books that much.
I hope you read this book and enjoy it 😆
March 2, 2010
Rats! Rats! Rats! I did not know there was so much information about rats. Oh, Rats! The Story of Rats and People, by Albert Marrin, is a fascinating book. Among other interesting facts we learn about different kinds of rats, their habits, the history of rats, and how rats are viewed and in different parts of the world. I never thought I could be so interested in information about rats. Kids would love this book! This book is appropriate for middle grades. It could be used for a research paper.
June 16, 2010
Very intersting book that included all one every needs to know about rats. Also has fascianting facts that can be found in boxes around the margins. Gives a new appreciation for these pests' persistance to survive any challenge. This book also makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up as it divulges information about carrying germs and disease, diets, and more. In the end it proves all creature have a place and purpose in this world.
September 3, 2016
Marrin gives an overview of rats - from their evolution into their current form, to their role in history and the folk knowledge that surrounds them. Beautiful scratchboard illustrations highlighted with red, perfectly accompany the text. An excellent piece of nonfiction for children that is split up into chapters with descriptive titles, and includes sources and book recommendations (though no index).
Readers' Advisory: Death, disease, descriptions of dissection
Readers' Advisory: Death, disease, descriptions of dissection
March 31, 2008
I read this for work. I feel bad giving it two stars. It was very well-written and well-researched. I am sure that the kids will enjoy reading it immensely. It was one of the most disgusting books I have read. Seriously. I felt quite sick in some places. I am generally not squeamish, so this came as a bit of a surprise.
July 17, 2008
This is a 2009 Rebecca Caudill. I found the writing style highly engaging for an informational book. Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I'm disgusted to find out that rat is a delicacy in some places. I also learned a lot about the plauge, etc. Great read for elementary and middle schoolers.
January 6, 2009
Rats are not the most popular of animals, but this history treats them fairly, giving information on the many amazing abilities of rats, as well as their unfortunate habit of carrying diseases threatening to humans. There are several resources listed in the back of the book to lead the reader to even more information on Rattus norvegicus or Rattus rattus.
January 27, 2010
This book was loads of disgusting fun! I hate rodents with a passion. And I squirmed the whole way through this book but it is also incredibly interesting. It takes a look at the long history humans and rat have shared...and continue to share. My boys in particular love this book...no need for a reluctant reader when you have a detailed rodent book laying around!
July 8, 2015
As disgusting as this might be to say, rats aren't that bad once you learn about them. They actually are respectable and intelligent creatures. For instance, rats take care of their sick, crippled, maimed, etc. instead of leaving them to struggle and die. I'm not sure we can say the same as a species.
February 26, 2018
Lovely short book. Probably more appropriate for kids. But it's a nice natural history that goes into some of the grimy places: eatings rats, rats as disease vectors, the ethics of using rats for science experimentation. I probably finished the book in 30 minutes, but learned a ton. The dark, faintly ominous ink drawings are also a plus.
May 24, 2008
Lots of interesting facts about rats...how they live, eat, reproduce, carry diseases, help scientists test drugs, etc. Kids will find some things gruesome, gross, ghastly, and fascinating, but in a easy to read, simple format. Not long in length, a good non-fiction book to keep them interested.
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