Spiders are amazing animals who far too often get a bad rap because of hysterical and misleading public media. I’m continually intrigued by watching them negotiate my home and land around where I live, and I always wonder what they know and what they’re thinking—often with their webs—and feeling about the innumerable situations in which they find themselves.1

For these and other reasons, I was thrilled to read Dr. James O’Hanlon’s new book titled Eight-Legged Wonders: The Surprising Lives of Spiders, which unveils the remarkable lives of one of the most misunderstood and maligned creatures on the planet: the spider. Here’s what he had to say about his lovely new and eye-opening book.

For years, I have worked in spider research laboratories alongside some of the world’s leading arachnologists. I am continually blown away by almost unbelievable stories about the lives of spiders, from their super-strong silk to their vivacious and voracious love lives and beyond. I was even more struck by the glaring inconsistency between these true stories and the dull stereotypes of spiders that are perpetuated in conversations and across the media.

I started looking around for an easy-to-read book on spiders that could change people’s minds and set the record straight once and for all about how incredible spiders really are. When I couldn’t find the book I was looking for, I decided to write it myself!

I am a scientist fascinated by the hidden world of tiny creatures that live dramatic........

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