Life in Hot Water
Mary Batten
Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez
Mary Batten took readers to the frozen world of Antarctica in Life in a Frozen World and now invites you to join her in one of the Earth’s most peculiar places: the bottom of the ocean, where creatures thrive in darkness and scalding water.
The scalding-hot water gushing from vents at the bottom of the ocean is one of the most extreme environments on Earth. Yet over millions of years, many organisms—from chemical-eating bacteria to eyeless crabs and iron-shelled snails—have evolved in amazing ways that enable them to thrive in this unlikely habitat. Scientists are hard at work to learn more about the complex ecosystems of the ocean depths.
Award-winning science writer Mary Batten and NYT best-selling illustrator Thomas Gonzalez, the masterful duo that created Life in a Frozen World, team up again in this impressive overview of hydrothermal ocean vents. Her clear, informative text coupled with his unique and eerily realistic paintings of sights never seen on land—gushing “black smokers,” ghostly blind shrimp, red-plumed tube worms—will entice readers to learn more about this once-hidden world at the bottom of the sea.
Get a sneak peek at the incredible illustrations from Thomas Gonzalez below!
Find Life in Hot Water this June at your local library, indie bookstore, or Barnes & Noble, and be sure to check out the rest of our brand-new books just out with Peachtree this Spring!