The Octopus Scientists

With three hearts and blue blood, its gelatinous body unconstrained by jointed limbs or gravity, the octopus seems to be an alien, an inhabitant of another world. It's baggy, boneless body sprouts eight arms covered with thousands of suckers--suckers that can taste as well as feel. The octopus also has the powers of a superhero: it can shape-shift, change color, squirt ink, pour itself through the tiniest of openings, or jet away through the sea faster than a swimmer can follow.
But most intriguing of all, octopuses--classed as mollusks, like clams--are remarkably intelligent with quirky personalities. This book, an inquiry into the mind of an intelligent invertebrate, is also a foray into our own unexplored planet. These thinking, feeling creatures can help readers experience and understand our world (and perhaps even life itself) in a new way.

Author: Sy Montgomery
Publisher: Clarion Books
Published: 05/26/2015
Pages: 80
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.35lbs
Size: 9.30h x 11.50w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9780544232709

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 6.8
Point Value: 3
Interest Level: Middle Grade
Quiz #/Name: 173900 / Octopus Scientists: Exploring the Mind of a Mollusk


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 04/01/2015
Booklist 05/15/2015 pg. 46
School Library Journal 07/01/2015 pg. 108
Horn Book Magazine 07/01/2015 pg. 159
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 07/01/2015
Kirkus Best Middle Grade Books 11/15/2015 pg. 84
Booklist Ed Choice Youth 01/01/2016 pg. 13

About the Author
Sy Montgomery writes award winning books for children and adults. Her book Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot was awarded the 2011 Sibert Medal. She lives in Hancock, NH. Keith Ellenbogen specializes in underwater photography and videography, documenting marine life to showcase the beauty of nature, inspire social change, and protection of the natural world. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.