Author: Lucas Miller

Illustrated by Sherlock and Amy Watson

ISBN: 978-0-978139-0-8

I’ve never met a child that wasn’t curious about snakes and other creepy crawlies. Now, some are more bold and eager than others, but they all have questions. They all want to look, even if they don’t all want to touch. Dr. DNA and the Anaconda Invasion will please them all, regardless of their squeamish level.

Dr. DNA is a superhero—sort of—who dispels the myths surrounding one of nature’s most mysterious and often terrifying creatures, the great anaconda. By morphing into just the right creature—sort of—Dr. DNA helps balance fact from hysteria. I say “sort of” because Dr. DNA is a bit unbalanced himself, in a zany and entertaining way.

In Dr. DNA’s first adventure, giant snakes take over Hollywood because they’re tired of the bad rap they get in the movies. Back home in South America, their absence leads to a population surge of their favorite prey. Apparently, capybaras (a rodent) really know how to throw a party! So, with Hollywood under siege and South America up to their cucarachas in capybaras, Dr. DNA has his work cut out for him.

I laughed out loud, several times. The humor tricks aren’t new, they’re just silly, and fun—the best kind. The art is colorful and keeps right in step with the text. There are plenty of visual jokes to please the kids.

As an adult (dang!), I appreciated the spread of facts, by anaconda researcher Dr. Jesus Rivas. This is a nice addition and will help this book pass for nonfiction with the more compassionate librarians and teachers.

The above review was contributed by: Susan Sales Harkins:  Software consultant and the author of several articles and books on database technologies. She and her husband, William, collaborate on children's non-fiction. Click Here to read more of Susan’s Reviews