This book wasn't quite what I expected, but definitely not in a bad way! The story mirrors human history but on an planet inhabitanted by insects. It examines politics and human nature in a wonderful and often humorous scifi way.

While the puns and such Amy suggest that this is a book for younger readers (and no doubt they'll enjoy these!) I think that more mature readers (mid to late teens and older) have the most to gain. I enjoyed all the political and social commentary. The ants (mostly upper class) look down on all the other insects (with needs being next in the hierarchy and the only other insects class allowed to study at university, albeit separately) and hoard as much honey as possible (equivalent of money), while destroying their planet and denying it, especially with the power that being a cyborg gives it! I appreciated the supposedly (but not really) free elections and nepotism that contributed to the downfall of the society - something that definitely still happens around the world. And how power gets you off with barely even a slao on the wrist at the expense of other, corruption, imprisoning those who speak out against you, racism, unequal rights, climate change and climate change denial, etc. While I could go on with listing this wonderful commentary, I'm sure this gives you an idea of what kind of book this is! I loved this but it definitely makes the book a lot heavier than it's somewhat jokey nature suggests.

I loved the characters. They were definitely very well.l thought out. I enjoyed their punny names that included the kind of insect they are in them (we have the likes of Gretant and Thunbug the eco activists and Antstrong (who even uses his namesake's famous quote!) and Inovant the inventors). I did get a little confused by Firefly though. At first I wondered why she didn't have a name and only later it was a fly and not the type of insect. Very minor complaint, I know! I also loved that our villain seemed to be a mishmash of various political figures (he reminded me a lot of Trump at the start and became more Hitler-like as the story progressed).

I appreciated that the insects communicated through pheromones for emotions, although the list at the end of the book is far too long. I tried to track how many were actually used and it's maybe 10-20%. And they also used more human emotional signs later on which disappointed me a bit as I loved the uniqueness of the earlier system. And it's one the author clearly put a lot of work on, given the aforementioned ten page list!

I loved this book and would definitely recommend it. But just be aware that it's quite political and you might not enjoy that (I could be wrong but I think strong republicans/capitalists might not enjoy all the the commentary, even though it's accurate!). If you decide to read this, be prepared for a crazy journey! ( )

F'ant'astic, imaginative book, very suitable for the young adult and fun to read by the more 'ant'ique reader. The whole series is shaping up to be a memorable read. Half way through you start to wonder if you have picked up all the ant references. I am 'ant'icpating the next book in the series.

This cautionary tale about selfishness, misuses of political power, and a disregard for the interconnectivity and interdependence between creatures and their environment is creatively told using a civilization of insects and insectoids. This book touches on many of the same themes that were in the previous book, "Antuna's Story", (obsession, discrimination, and deceptive “news”, to name a few) and expands its concerns to the political and scientific arenas.

There's a lot in this story, both happenings and characters, and it covers a huge span of time. The story presented well its political, economic, and ecological messages. A lot of clever acronyms were introduced and used, although it would have been helpful to have them all compiled in the appendix for reference.

I found the story harder to read than the first book: a regular pattern was a paragraph or two that described a character or events, followed shortly thereafter by mention of those same characteristics or happenings, sometimes described nearly the same way. The narratives summarizing events often overwhelmed the parts about the characters who were living through and dealing with those events. Frequently, it felt like the emphasis on the points the tale was making overpowered the actual story. It made it hard to connect to the characters with so much narrative devoted to the events and less attention on the characters and their concerns.

Overall, this allegorical and anthropomorphic fiction story entertained and informed, carrying the insects' civilization through a lot of changes and challenges. It's a tale worth sitting down with. (3.8 stars, rounded to 4.)

(Read December 2022) ( )

The Antunite Chronicles continue with Antuna’s ancestors facing new challenges on planet Poo-Ponic. I continue to love how this young adult book explores more mature themes. Climate change. Political corruption. Betrayal. A conflict during the early school days between Antilla, who comes from a well off family, and Antithery, who is a hard worker, over Antianna, another student at their school, results in a cruel prank where another student is horribly burned. Antilla gets off scot free despite his guilt because of who his father is and this sets off years of him sabotaging and competing against Antithery at every turn. I liked the broader themes in this one, much like the first book. Cyborgs are first used to harvest honey, but quicky this is exploited so the rich can get richer and seize resources and power. Antilla seizes power and control within the government, and begins “exterminating” (ha ha) the opposition. There are rebels and secret bug police. The writing is sharp, with clever rhyming verse at the start of chapters, witty podcasts, and fun naming schemes. I particularly liked when we are introduced to the chapters of concern over climate change and meet Gretant and Thunbug. Lol! Everything is thought out from the perspective of bugs. Hexants instead of days because of the number of leg segments. Pheromones to communicate. Fun bug puns. This is a well written second installment to a well written series. Recommended for young sci fi lovers! 5/5 stars. ( )

I find this book to be interesting on all levels. It's layers and lays of the journey that this book takes you on talks for itself ( )