Everyone knows what a tadpole looks like, but did you know that just nine days before they reach that stage, toad embryos live in “strings of jelly” resembling spaghetti? This beautifully photographed account follows the life cycle of toads, starting with eggs, moving through the tadpole stage to tiny toadlets, and ending three years later with a mature female toad ready to mate and start the life cycle over again. Close-up photographs are labeled with the toads’ ages and accompanied by clear, simple text that will be accessible to young children. The book is equipped with a glossary, additional information about toads, and a note about how the author managed to snag such revealing photographs. (Ages 4-8)

In jaw-dropping photos, Doug Wechsler captures the life cycle of the American toad from egg to tadpole to adult. To get these images, Wechsler sat in a pond wearing waders, went out night after night in search of toads, and cut his own glass to make a home aquarium. The resulting photos reveal metamorphosis in extreme close-up as readers have never seen it before.

Budding naturalists will be transfixed by this unprecedented peek into the secrets of tadpole transformation. Demystifying