Spanish Fly, Black Widows, Corpse Eaters and Zombies (Oh My!)

What do you get when you mix Spanish Fly, Black Widows, Corpse Eaters and Zombies? If you said ‘A great idea for a hugely successful horror movie’, you are probably right. But a better answer would be ‘chapters in Amy Stewart's new book, Wicked Bugs: The Louse That Conquered Napoleon's Army & Other Diabolical Insects.

In Wicked Bugs, Stewart shares a darkly comical look at the sinister side of our relationship with the insect world. Customer reviews on Amazon.com range from “Lot’s of Stinging Fun”, “Light, Breezy and Terrifying”, and “Deliciously Wicked”.

Another great review, from the New York Times, said this:

"Wicked Bugs defines bug in the amateur sense — that is, anything creepy-crawly, including worms, snails, slugs and other insects that are not, technically speaking, bugs. A true bug, Ms. Stewart acknowledges, has six legs and wings, like all insects, as well as piercing and sucking mouthparts. And wicked, she makes clear, lies in the eye of the beholder, whether you’re a Roman with scorpions falling into your eyes or a Marylander with stink bugs falling into your hair... Wicked Bugs has some good tips for gardeners, like putting out rolled-up newspaper or cardboard tubes at night to trap earwigs and dumping them into soapy water in the morning... In fact, no bug is truly wicked. It is just eating.”—New York Times
(The New York Times )

If you want to meet the author of Wicked Bugs and pick up a few copies of the book for great gardening gifts, join the Silver Spring Garden Club for their monthly meeting (free and open to the public) on Monday, October 17th at 8:00 pm, at Brookside Gardens Visitor Center to hear Amy Stewart discuss her new book.

Amy Stewart is a bestselling author of five books on the perils and pleasures of the natural world. She has been featured on NPR, in the New York Times, and on CBS “Sunday Morning.” She is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship and the American Horticultural Society’s 2010 Book Award.

Prior to the talk, Amy’s book will be on sale at Brookside’s gift shop.

Amy will be signing the book before and after the talk.

WHEN: Monday, October 17

Store opens at 7:00PM

Talk starts at 8:00PM

WHERE: Brookside Gardens Visitors Center,

1800 Glenallan Avenue, Wheaton, Maryland

Visit http://www.amystewart.com/ for more.