The Red Hourglass: Lives of the Predators (Allen Lane Science S.) - Tapa dura

Nature's most fearsome predators are nightmarish creatures: the black widow, recognizable by the blood-red hourglass shape on its underside; the rattlesnake; the tarantula; the feral pig. With an unnerving sense of delight, Gordon Grice shows that the reality of these creatures' behaviour is in fact far worse than anything we might imagine. Grice's household is full of murderous pets; his powerful imagination obsessed by every eery and evil aspect of nature. His remarkable book is a unique combination of scientific description, tall and twisted tales, wildly funny recollections and dark philosophical reflection. 'A precise and savage blow aimed at our predatory supremacy - I wolfed it down' - Will Self

Gordon Grice's essay 'The Black Widow' was included in Houghton Mifflin's Best American Essays 1996. He teaches humanities and English in Liberal, Kansas, and lives in rural Oklahoma.