An introduction, with softly colored drawings that--while large and colorful--are sometimes fuzzy. The brief text discusses anatomy, habitat, and how snakes move, feed, and raise their young. Constrictors and poisonous snakes, as well as more common garden varieties, are touched on; the reader is advised that most snakes eat harmful insects and rodents. A world map of poisonous snakes is of limited use: according to the color key, one has an ``average'' chance of meeting a poisonous snake throughout the central portion of South America. Concludes with a brief page of facts, but there are no specialized terms or scientific names. Attractive, but not essential. (Nonfiction. 8-10)
