Perfect for kids who are fascinated by insects and American history, here is the story of Nan Songer, a little-known hero of World War II, who collected and bred spiders in her home and found new ways to use their silk to help the United States win the war.
Venomous spiders, delicate silk, and science experiments filled Nan Songer’s days and nights—her home in California overflowed with many-legged critters. With inspiration from a friend, Nan began to study how spider silk could be harvested. The finely woven material spiders used to create webs was much stronger than it looked, and Nan was eager to unlock its potential and hopefully help her country at the same time. At the height of WWII, she studied different spiders before landing on the poisonous black widow as the perfect spider to experiment with. Their strong silk could be used for crosshairs on rifles, which Nan used to fill massive orders for the US military. Despite the danger posed by black widows, Nan wasn’t deterred—she wanted to play her part. Using a device she built for extracting silk, Nan humanely used it on the deadly spiders to get both extra fine and super heavy silk.
Penny Parker Klostermann is the author of There Was an Old Dragon Who Swallowed a Knight and A Cooked-Up Fairy Tale. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and was a runner-up for a Barbara Karlin Grant for Writers of Picture Books. Visit pennyklostermann.com.
View titles by Penny Parker Klostermann
Anne Lambelet has created cover art for several book series, and has illustrated a variety of books, including Cloaked in Courage, Maria the Matador, and The Poisoned Apple. Her titles have received starred reviews from School Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, and others. She received her illustration degree from Philadelphia’s University of the Arts. Visit annelambelet.com.
View titles by Anne Lambelet
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"A self-taught scientist rose to the challenge when World War II increased demand for spider silk. Klostermann’s brief, engrossing text eschews typical biographical information (Nan’s birthplace, education), focusing instead on her subject’s fascinating work. Lambelet’s meticulously detailed sepia and teal art vividly depicts Nan in pursuit of her passionate vocation. Weaves an impressive story of arachnid accomplishment."—Kirkus Reviews
"With a palette plucked from nature, this educational picture book spins the tale of an unsung hero of WWII."—Foreword Reviews
"The prospect of using spider silk for anything but weaving webs will fascinate young readers, and Songer's creative efforts to collect the silk with homemade contraptions will easily hold their attention... An intriguing snapshot of the intersection of human invention and the natural world, perfect for STEM collections."—Booklist
Perfect for kids who are fascinated by insects and American history, here is the story of Nan Songer, a little-known hero of World War II, who collected and bred spiders in her home and found new ways to use their silk to help the United States win the war.
Venomous spiders, delicate silk, and science experiments filled Nan Songer’s days and nights—her home in California overflowed with many-legged critters. With inspiration from a friend, Nan began to study how spider silk could be harvested. The finely woven material spiders used to create webs was much stronger than it looked, and Nan was eager to unlock its potential and hopefully help her country at the same time. At the height of WWII, she studied different spiders before landing on the poisonous black widow as the perfect spider to experiment with. Their strong silk could be used for crosshairs on rifles, which Nan used to fill massive orders for the US military. Despite the danger posed by black widows, Nan wasn’t deterred—she wanted to play her part. Using a device she built for extracting silk, Nan humanely used it on the deadly spiders to get both extra fine and super heavy silk.
Creators
Penny Parker Klostermann is the author of There Was an Old Dragon Who Swallowed a Knight and A Cooked-Up Fairy Tale. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and was a runner-up for a Barbara Karlin Grant for Writers of Picture Books. Visit pennyklostermann.com.
View titles by Penny Parker Klostermann
Anne Lambelet has created cover art for several book series, and has illustrated a variety of books, including Cloaked in Courage, Maria the Matador, and The Poisoned Apple. Her titles have received starred reviews from School Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, and others. She received her illustration degree from Philadelphia’s University of the Arts. Visit annelambelet.com.
View titles by Anne Lambelet
Rights
Available for sale exclusive:
• Canada
• Guam
• Minor Outl.Ins.
• North Mariana
• Philippines
• Puerto Rico
• Samoa,American
• US Virgin Is.
• USA
Not available for sale:
• Afghanistan
• Aland Islands
• Albania
• Algeria
• Andorra
• Angola
• Anguilla
• Antarctica
• Antigua/Barbuda
• Argentina
• Armenia
• Aruba
• Australia
• Austria
• Azerbaijan
• Bahamas
• Bahrain
• Bangladesh
• Barbados
• Belarus
• Belgium
• Belize
• Benin
• Bermuda
• Bhutan
• Bolivia
• Bonaire, Saba
• Bosnia Herzeg.
• Botswana
• Bouvet Island
• Brazil
• Brit.Ind.Oc.Ter
• Brit.Virgin Is.
• Brunei
• Bulgaria
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cambodia
• Cameroon
• Cape Verde
• Cayman Islands
• Centr.Afr.Rep.
• Chad
• Chile
• China
• Christmas Islnd
• Cocos Islands
• Colombia
• Comoro Is.
• Congo
• Cook Islands
• Costa Rica
• Croatia
• Cuba
• Curacao
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Dem. Rep. Congo
• Denmark
• Djibouti
• Dominica
• Dominican Rep.
• Ecuador
• Egypt
• El Salvador
• Equatorial Gui.
• Eritrea
• Estonia
• Ethiopia
• Falkland Islnds
• Faroe Islands
• Fiji
• Finland
• France
• Fren.Polynesia
• French Guinea
• Gabon
• Gambia
• Georgia
• Germany
• Ghana
• Gibraltar
• Greece
• Greenland
• Grenada
• Guadeloupe
• Guatemala
• Guernsey
• Guinea Republic
• Guinea-Bissau
• Guyana
• Haiti
• Heard/McDon.Isl
• Honduras
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• Iceland
• India
• Indonesia
• Iran
• Iraq
• Ireland
• Isle of Man
• Israel
• Italy
• Ivory Coast
• Jamaica
• Japan
• Jersey
• Jordan
• Kazakhstan
• Kenya
• Kiribati
• Kuwait
• Kyrgyzstan
• Laos
• Latvia
• Lebanon
• Lesotho
• Liberia
• Libya
• Liechtenstein
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Macau
• Macedonia
• Madagascar
• Malawi
• Malaysia
• Maldives
• Mali
• Malta
• Marshall island
• Martinique
• Mauritania
• Mauritius
• Mayotte
• Mexico
• Micronesia
• Moldavia
• Monaco
• Mongolia
• Montenegro
• Montserrat
• Morocco
• Mozambique
• Myanmar
• Namibia
• Nauru
• Nepal
• Netherlands
• New Caledonia
• New Zealand
• Nicaragua
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Niue
• Norfolk Island
• North Korea
• Norway
• Oman
• Pakistan
• Palau
• Palestinian Ter
• Panama
• PapuaNewGuinea
• Paraguay
• Peru
• Pitcairn Islnds
• Poland
• Portugal
• Qatar
• Reunion Island
• Romania
• Russian Fed.
• Rwanda
• S. Sandwich Ins
• Saint Martin
• San Marino
• SaoTome Princip
• Saudi Arabia
• Senegal
• Serbia
• Seychelles
• Sierra Leone
• Singapore
• Sint Maarten
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Solomon Islands
• Somalia
• South Africa
• South Korea
• South Sudan
• Spain
• Sri Lanka
• St Barthelemy
• St. Helena
• St. Lucia
• St. Vincent
• St.Chr.,Nevis
• St.Pier,Miquel.
• Sth Terr. Franc
• Sudan
• Suriname
• Svalbard
• Swaziland
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Syria
• Tadschikistan
• Taiwan
• Tanzania
• Thailand
• Timor-Leste
• Togo
• Tokelau Islands
• Tonga
• Trinidad,Tobago
• Tunisia
• Turkey
• Turkmenistan
• Turks&Caicos Is
• Tuvalu
• Uganda
• Ukraine
• Unit.Arab Emir.
• United Kingdom
• Uruguay
• Uzbekistan
• Vanuatu
• Vatican City
• Venezuela
• Vietnam
• Wallis,Futuna
• West Saharan
• Western Samoa
• Yemen
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe
Praise
"A self-taught scientist rose to the challenge when World War II increased demand for spider silk. Klostermann’s brief, engrossing text eschews typical biographical information (Nan’s birthplace, education), focusing instead on her subject’s fascinating work. Lambelet’s meticulously detailed sepia and teal art vividly depicts Nan in pursuit of her passionate vocation. Weaves an impressive story of arachnid accomplishment."—Kirkus Reviews
"With a palette plucked from nature, this educational picture book spins the tale of an unsung hero of WWII."—Foreword Reviews
"The prospect of using spider silk for anything but weaving webs will fascinate young readers, and Songer's creative efforts to collect the silk with homemade contraptions will easily hold their attention... An intriguing snapshot of the intersection of human invention and the natural world, perfect for STEM collections."—Booklist
