One Beetle Too Many ─ The Extraordinary Adventures of Charles Darwin

A lively text and captivating images tell the story of the ever-curious boy who grew up to make one of the most significant discoveries of our time.

From the time Charles Darwin was a boy, he was happiest when he was out alone collecting specimens (especially beetles). And despite his father's efforts to turn young Darwin — a poor student — into a doctor or clergyman, the born naturalist jumped instead at the chance to sail around South America, observing and collecting flora and fauna all the way. In a clear, engaging narration, Kathryn Lasky takes readers along on Darwin's journey, from his discovery of seashells on mountaintops that revealed geological changes to his observations of variations in plants and animals, suggesting that all living things are evolving over time. Matthew Trueman's striking mixed-media illustrations include actual objects found in nature, enhancing this compelling look at the man behind the bold theory that would change the way we think about the world — and ourselves.

Kathryn Lasky is the award-winning author of more than ninety books for children, including JOHN MUIR: AMERICA'S FIRST ENVIRONMENTALIST; A VOICE OF HER OWN: THE STORY OF PHILLIS WHEATLEY, SLAVE POET; VISION OF BEAUTY: THE STORY OF SARAH BREEDLOVE WALKER; and INTERRUPTED JOURNEY: SAVING ENDANGERED SEA TURTLES. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Matthew Trueman spent his childhood in Italy but returned to the United States to attend art school. He is the illustrator of A PICTURE FOR MARC and NOAH'S MITTENS. He lives in Phillipsburg, New Jersey.

Of ONE BEETLE TOO MANY, he says: "The illustrations in this book started out as drawings created with acrylic inks, watercolor, and graphite pencil. I moved up the food chain to add gouache and colored pencil. After sealing the pictures with acrylic medium, I did my thicker acrylic painting, then fooled around a little more with graphite and colored pencil. Finally, I added the collage elements, including paper, string, and weeds and wildflowers from my yard and nearby ditches and fields."