Reviewed by Me for TeensReadtoo.com

I absolutely adore these helpful guidebooks published by Walker Books. As with the 101 THINGS... series, author Tracey Turner gives us a book that is both extremely useful and hilariously entertaining.

DEADLY PERILS AND HOW TO AVOID THEM is divided up into eight distinct sections: Menaces from the Deep, Deadly Planet, Unexpected Perils, Animal Attacks, Small but Lethal, Perilous Weather, Everyday Perils, and Adventurous Perils. Each section then contains several different examples of perils that you might someday encounter, although, hopefully, you'll be able to avoid them at all costs.

Each peril includes additional information, such as the Peril Rating, Location, and Best Known For. Additionally, you are given a predicament, info on what's the worst that can happen, the good news, the bad news, and how to avoid said peril. As I mentioned before, although most perils mentioned are serious (and some ultimately deadly), the best thing about these guidebooks is the humor the author inserts into the subject matter.

In the end, if you've ever wondered how to avoid death by Blue-Ringed Octopus, or how not to die due to a Tortoise-Dropping Bird, or how to stay away from Poisonous Garden Plants or Botulism or Cape Buffaloes, then this is definitely the book for you! ( )

A note in the book says that the author writes books for children. This isn't one of them. The listings of deadly perils to be met not only thousands of miles away from boring old England but lurking in the house, for example when putting your clothes on or while asleep are quite graphic enough to give an ordinarly sensitive child nightmares for years. In fact it is difficult to know who are the intended readers, since you would think that anyone going skydiviing or exploring coral reefs would have apprised themselves of the likely hazards in advance anyway.

The print is small, the pages are unnumbered and the design is undistinguished in the modern manner. ( )