Cassowaries with killer claws, the bizarro Vampire Squid, and the Potoo of Central America (a bird with a croaking, retching call) are also described with passion, artful wordsmithing, and reverence. Alluring lines about the Corpse Flower, an Indonesian native that grows large and stinky to attract nocturnal pollinating beetles, are enough to make anyone a fan. The essays uncover the astonishing habits of ribbon eels, whale sharks, flamingos, dancing frogs, and other lovelies, while other less popular but no less wondrous flora and fauna also shine.
Fumi Nakamura’s delicate, elegant illustrations frame these emotive, tender writings. This is one of those rare finds that leaves you feeling warm and content with the world around you.In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other AstonishmentsĪimee Nezhukumatathil’s shimmering essay collection about fantastic creatures and plants, World of Wonders, is shot through with memories of her peripatetic life and observations about race, motherhood, and environmental issues. “And when it eats-what a wild mess-when it gathers a tangle of bloodworms into its mouth, you will understand how a galaxy first learns to spin in the dark, and how it begins to grow and grow.”
You have to admire a writer who can link the violent scent of a corpse plant to falling in love with her husband, or, who turns the eating habits of an axolotl (salamander) into quotable poetry. Each essay shines a light on the beauty of the world by embracing its weirder parts. It may seem a little random at times to jump from a sweet memory about chasing fireflies to a description of snake, but Nezhukumatathil does so effortlessly. The accompanying illustrations are stunning and make you pause to savour each essay that little bit more. A story about drawing a peacock shows us how she was made to feel ‘un-American’ by a teacher, while the long legs of the flamingo are related to the uneasy feeling of walking home as a female college student late at night. The essays are short, yet full of meaning as they touch upon race (Nezhukumatathil is half Indian and half Filipino), family and womanhood. This unique take on a memoir is made of 28 essays on different plants and animals from the natural world to share Nezhukumatathil's experiences of growing up and transitioning from child to wife to mother.
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