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The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre

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In this book Fabre is not only a taxonomist but a behaviorist and he describes insect behavior in a charming and almost poetic way. This book is in no way dry in the way some find books on science to be and as much as it teaches us about insects and other classes of invertebrates it also teaches us about observation. And though I am vehemently opposed to mixing science with mysticism this book would probably be enjoyed by those seeking self improvement and spirituality as much as it would be enjoyed by the scientist.
When I was a child I had an aunt (God bless you Aunt Alberta) who lived on the West coast. She was a Biology teacher. Every once and awhile care packages of books would come from California. One of those books was "The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre". My mother would sometimes read to me from the book when our family when for a drive. I used to hang on every word.
In a way that book changed my life as I am now a scientist.
I think it can change yours as well. In this loud brash world let Fabre guide you into the gentle world of observation.
Highly recommended.

This was far and away my favorite book of the year when I read it a few years ago. Fabre (1823-1915) was no dry, pedantic writer of insect anatomy and classification, like many 19th and 20th century entomologists. He was a keen observer, insightful scientist, and lively writer. His passionate commentary - just the sort of "subjective" stuff excluded from scientific journals - is what makes the text come alive; for Fabre makes the reader aware that these insects have LIVES, and heightens our awareness of what is going on in the world around us which we so rarely bother to notice. I highly recommend purchasing this or any other book of collected writings by this outstanding man.

Sometime during the 1950s I got this book out of the local library. It took me only a little while to almost literally devour it! I had been primed by a natural curiosity about insects, the acquisition of the 1952 Yearbook of Agriculture on Insects and the "Golden Guide to Insects" by Herbert Zim. When I read Fabre's writings excerpted in "The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre" I was hooked. Here was no dry account of very obscure facts, but instead a vibrant exposition of the actual lives of insects! And what subjects for study- pine processionary caterpillars, giant peacock moths, sacred scarabs, solitary wasps, mason bees, grasshoppers, cicadas, spittle bugs and on and on. Fabre had his blind spots (he never figured out how scorpions actually mate, disavowed Darwin and often made mistakes in identification.) However he was a great writer and you have to be totally uninterested not to be captivated by his prose.

Soon I was catching, observing and collecting insects. While I had other interests from time to time, these and the related spiders (I became a specialist in the latter) had caught my imagination and my fate was sealed.

This is perhaps the best anthology of excerpts from Fabre's works and I recommend it to anyone who wants to learn something of the usually unnoticed activities in every yard, garden, woods or desert.

This book tells the secrets of insect behavior. The author observes very closely the lives of the many species he studied. This is nature at her smartest and her blindest; beauty, horror and science. Highly recommended by me.

My new favorite book. An excellent accidental satire infused with gentle anthropomorphism, and balanced evenly with cruel objectivism and humane compassion. Make sure the translator is de Mattos for the good stuff.

Exquisitely written, my imagination was immediately captured by Fabre's patient observations and his poetic retelling of each adventure. Once called an "incomparable observer" by Charles Darwin, Fabre's unsurpassed enthusiasm springs to life on every page. Since reading it a few short years ago I have ever since felt inspired to sit longer in the fields and to spend more time just observing. Admittedly, Fabre was self taught and isolated. He stubbornly disagreed with the theory of evolution. Looking back on his work it is easy to see the mistakes he made, blind spots in his approach to the larger aspects of biological research. Still, if you decide to read this book I'm sure you will be inspired to be with insects. What better thing to do?

The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre is a compilation of 40 excerpts from Fabre's many works published from 1912 through 1923. The distinguished American naturalist writer Edwin Way Teale translated his work from French to English. J. Henri Fabre (1823- 1915), of France, was a founder in the field of entomology. He was "...shadowed by penury and his life was an epic struggle against the worries and irritations that beset the poor". He struggled toward a diploma and at 19 years old he became a teacher. In 1870, he was dismissed from his job, which lead to the loss of his home. With the help of a good friend he was able to work his way through his debt and save enough money to buy a small piece of "sun-scorched and thistle-ridden" land, which became his laboratory: his Eden. Edwin Way Teale was a writer for Popular Science and a distinguished author of many books. He was also the winner of Pulitzer Prize for General Non Fiction in 1966 and the John Burroughs Medal in 1943. In 1949, Teale who was a great admirer of Fabre wrote The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre.
Fabre uses his gift of poetic writing to capture and intrigue the reader with the beauty he finds in the insect world. The following passage reveals his passion and philosophy:
"You rip up the animal and I study it alive; you labour in a torture chamber and

dissecting-room, I make my observations under the blue sky to the song of the

Cicadas, you subject cell and protoplasm to chemical tests, I study instinct in its

loftiest manifestations; you pry into death, I pry into life...I write above all things

for the young. I want to make them love natural history which you make them hate;

and that is why, while keeping strictly to the domain of truth, I avoid your

scientific prose, which too often, alas seems borrowed from Iroquois idiom"!
The focus, themes, and ideas of this book are centered on the actual lives of insects, making it a very unique piece. In a chapter, sometimes continuing for a few chapters, Fabre provides a variety of data on an insect's behavior: whether it is its defense mechanism, courtship, or simply something like how do ants manage to follow its original path. For example, Fabre talks about the Languedocian Sphex's (a wasp) method of paralyzing its prey, the Ephippiger (a grasshopper), and providing this source to its offspring. Fabre watches and waits until the Sphex drives its lancets into the ganglia of the thorax, wounding but not killing its prey. Fabre alternates the situation and creates, in a very natural way, a situation where the prey is replaced as to watch how the Ephippiger is paralyzed. His first attempt is unsuccessful but insightful. The Sphex only preys on females and Fabre provided a male, which only lead to the Sphex flying away. Fabre did gather other valuable data but it was not until 20 years later that he finishes what he started. His son rushes to him with the news of a Sphex dragging an Ephippiger to its burrow and also providing him with 2 female and 1 male Ephippiger to experiment with. Fabre's excitement is ignited again. He watched as the Sphex attacked the both Ephippiger females. Even though he could not see the details of how exactly the Ephippiger was paralyzed he was able to make new observations and confirm his original data on the behavior of the Sphex instead.
"...Fabre struggled on `without masters, without guides, often without books...with one aim: to add a few pages to the history of the insects'". Teale compiles this book to reflect Fabre's devote love and passion for insects at a time when the field was almost unnoticeable. It pays Fabre the tribute that he was deprived of for most of his very long life while also entertaining those looking for insight into a world that is usually ignored and enlightening its readers. "His harvest was a harvest of facts rather than a harvest of conclusions. `I observe, I experiment and I let facts speak for themselves'", while Fabre's work is insightful, it is not conclusive. With the poor conditions he worked under (including the crude equipment he used but not limiting it to this) there were some questions that he could never answer. Also, his findings were not greatly scientific, he relied on others to identify the insects he worked with since he was not a trained entomologist and in some cases his writings were not detailed enough so doubts remain as to which species he actually used in his studies.
Fabre used to say his best instruments were time and patience, which goes to show just how much his work meant to him. The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre is a well-written book on Teale's part. I was expecting something very dry that lacked sincerity and enthusiasm but these qualities are enduring until the end. It will satisfy those looking for an interesting read therefore I would recommend this book.
This is an enjoyable piece work; it provides the reader with a taste of Fabre's style and also a taste for the field. I think this piece is a great source for those who are looking for an introduction to entomology or even those just looking for new and exciting reading. Its variety and story like chapters keeps the reader interested so as to never lose the reader in scientific jargon or bore you with a never-ending story. Considering that I myself have very little background in this field, I was able to learn and even better enjoy the book; I can say that this book definitely sparked my interests.