Review by Booklist Review
Leigh digs up scores of creatures living underneath our feet in the complex ecosystem of the soil. Beginning with a brief overview of soil (dirt mixed with organic matter), she explains its role in supporting life around the world, as well as the differences between various layers of soil. She then demonstrates the rich diversity of life in and around the soil by introducing readers to creatures in order of size: microfauna and microflora, like bacteria, protozoa, and fungi, are tiny but plentiful and do much of the breaking down of organic matter; mesofauna include barely visible creatures like mites and springtails that can be found on every continent; macrofauna are small but mostly familiar invertebrates like insects, arachnids, and worms; finally, megafauna are larger animals like moles, badgers, owls, and other animals that burrow and make their home underground. Whimsical cartoon illustrations fill the pages, adding details and plenty of opportunities for reader engagement, especially with speech bubbles like an antlion (which is a lacewing larva) proclaiming "I'm just a widdle baby!" A final section on soil-friendly practices concludes the book, but the catalog of amazing creatures who make their home underground is an excellent reminder to take care of "the dirt." Though students likely take soil for granted, this standout overview showcases how fascinating it can be.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2--6--Following the format of two previous titles, The Deep! (about oceans) and The Dark! (on caves), The Dirt! starts with introductory chapters on soil that set the stage for the following dive into the wildlife found there. Those four chapters are divided by size of the creatures--mico, meso, macro and mega. With varying levels of description, Leigh covers an astounding 75 kinds of flora and fauna, including nematodes, rotifers, springtails, potworms, antlions, gopher tortoise, and caecilians just to name a few. She ends with a two-page chapter on saving the soil and an index of soil creatures. The book's tone is light, fun, and informative while not shying away from key elements of soil, such as death, decomposition, and poop. The use of panels, word bubbles, inserts, and dynamic text placement keeps the format lively without crossing into frenetic. The illustrations are a humorous, accessible mix of realism and anthropomorphism which will have wide appeal. VERDICT This engaging starter look at soil and the variety of the flora and fauna that live in it is a solid and appealing purchase for all libraries.--Catherine Callegari
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A vigorous dig into the interconnected lives of the denizens of our planet's soil, from microbes to meerkats. Focusing on fauna but also offering a few glances at flora and fungi, Leigh shovels quips and wisecracks into the rich factual loam that fills her cross-sectional and inset views of the biota that mostly live their lives just out of sight while busily making nutritious "humus" ("No, no, not hummus!") from sterile dirt. The author/illustrator works her way up from bacteria and nematodes to the memorably named screaming hairy armadillo and hog badger. Nematodes, she notes, make up some 80% of all animal life on Earth and serve as a "bountiful noodley buffet" for many predators. Along the way, she convincingly underscores the fundamental notion of interdependency, from the "wood wide web" on. And though Leigh urges readers to love their teeming terrestrial neighbors underfoot, she also presents a remarkably nuanced picture. She explains that though earthworms are beneficial, some are invasive to North America and potentially harmful ("Earthworms: Forest Frenemy"). All of this chewy grit is sandwiched between closer looks at soil itself as medium and habitat, beginning with its composition and layers and ending with the effects of erosion, pesticides, and acid rain. Burrows brilliantly into its topic with a will and a wink. (index)(Graphic nonfiction. 8-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
