Cuteness! Informative, fun, silly.

I love when picture books manage to be informative and scientific. It’s an extra bonus when the book also has a spunky cute main character too!

I happen to love insects so this was a total win for me. Ashley Spires likely has another hit on her hands.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Burt the Beetle Doesn't Bite is a charming children's book about Burt, a watermelon beetle who is trying to figure out what his superpower is. He takes a tour through many different insects and learns about what their superpowers are but can't seem to find his superpower.

I was not the intended audience for this book but I think it is a book my 3-year-old nephew would love. It has beautiful illustrations that are eye-catching. The story provides some good information about different insects before ending with a heartwarming message. The amount of information is appropriate to the target audience and doesn't feel like too much or too little.

I would definitely recommend this as a great gift for a small human who is particularly interested in science or animals.

It was a fun and entertaining read with great artwork for me and my kids. We learned quite a lot about insects in a quick and engaging way that we are sure to remember and refer back to.

This is a short & fun graphic novel about Burt the Beetle that both tells a story about uniqueness and being special while also teaching about various insects.

The plotline was cute and playfully introduces a variety of insects. I found it a bit confusing that insects from a variety of climates and countries were chosen rather than from one single area. Sure, most were common enough, but some seemed really specialized.

Still a fun read suitable for kids that can help against building insect related phobias.

Many thanks to Kids Can Press and Netgalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.


Burt the Beetle Doesn't know what his superpower is. As we go to a short journey with Burt, we learn so many things about insects and their superpowers, and how Burt deals with his lack of powers in the insect world.

This was very good. The art and the story.
The morale of this story is very important, I believe this will help any child who doesn't feel special, or inferior to other children.
That our greatest assets comes from within is a great lesson to learn early on.

4.5 stars

This is the cutest book. The illustrations are the best. You feel like you are outside with a cute beetle and his friends. This would be a great classroom read about being nice to each other and also to learn more about insects.

Cute and informative. Lower elementary kids will love it. The comic style and funny text will engage readers.

I got this on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

I really liked this book and everything it represents! I both felt like it gives key information about a bunch of insects and features, while also highlighting that everyone has something about them that makes them special and useful, and that we shouldn’t compare ourselves with others. Really cute art too!

This was ADORABLE and HILARIOUS. I love it!

The art is amazing, Burt is the cutest, and there are some super fun facts about insects. This is a fantastic piece of art and information.

I would definitely recommend this for preschoolers, but I wish it was longer and that there were MORE facts about different insects.

This was too cute! Loved the bug facts. Burt is so charming, you can’t help liking him. I liked that all had strengths and weaknesses. I really loved the spider and how he was foiled. Keep Burt’s adventures coming!

This was such a fun read - it is a great story and packed with fun facts too!

The story centres around Burt the Beetle and his differences to some of the more "interesting" insects that are about. This could be the start of a great little series - my three year old really enjoyed it!

5 stars from me - excellent illustrations - very highly recommended!

Hmmm… This quick and snappy read left me wanting more, although not particularly more of exactly the same. The main character of this edutainment is a june bug, or watermelon beetle, which kind of limits this book's appeal to the US states where it lives. We see how several insects could be said to have a superpower, all the while finding that the june bug would appear to have none, until it does. And the book doesn't really explain how – and both the reader and the victim of the said power are kind of left hanging as a result. There's a good comic timing if you like between the characters and the narrator, and the graphic novel format is used attractively, but as the book didn't really follow through logically on the science it gave us it can't get full marks. Worth a read if your child is into garden critters of the beetle variety, but I'm not suggesting to any librarians who might offer the chance of such a reading opportunity that it's at all essential.

Incredibly adorable book, that reminds us that something that others take for granted may be something that you're fantastic at. So don't let the nay sayers get you down.