There are a few places where the story gets 'teachy', as Max, the main character, is a bug nerd: I do wish he was on the cover, though.Īn action-packed adventure story for kids who love bugs. I love that the pictures did not default him to white. Max’s ethnicity is never mentioned in the book, at least not that I caught, and yet he’s drawn as black. So far three are out with the fourth coming out in the next couple weeks and the fifth due in January. I booktalked it to the third graders since it’s closer to their reading level right now and they’ve already asked for more in the series. I picked up a copy for a few dollars on Amazon because our second grade does a unit on insects and thought this might tie in nicely with that.

And I like it even more when a kid can totally geek out without shame. I like it when smarts are not something a kid has to be ashamed of. Max is a cool kid that draws on his knowledge of insects to help them fight and win a battle. The plot is pretty straight forward despite the “mystery” of how Max got to the island and it’s full of suspense, quick saves and action. This would be a great book to hand to reluctant readers who are interested in insects or reptiles (although the reptiles are the villains). But boy is it exciting and engaging! Battle Bugs combines bugs, insects, and various other creepy crawlies in a war with lizards and reptiles. I would not call this book great literature.

Download the lizard war battle bugs 1