in which countries, how they became extinct and especially the box of fun facts about each one. Every double page is dedicated to an animal, fish or insects with a description, their status of extinction, the location and habitat where they once or in rare cases do live and their fun facts.

There are sixty creatures to discover, sure to help grow reader's knowledge and broaden their vocabulary. The beautiful and detailed illustrations bring all these creatures to life.

It is a large format book, ideal for pouring over on a rainy day, some quiet time while discovering how they lived, what they look like - some are quite baffling and then surprising peers and friends with their new found knowledge. 

Find out about the dodo, thylacine, Chinese paddlefish, the giant ground sloth, the Kangaroo Island Assassin spider, the Reunion starling, Delcourt's giant gecko and many more.

Teachers resources  are available from the publishers page.

The author

Sami Bayly is a natural history illustrator based in Newcastle, NSW, who loves all things weird and wonderful. She finds the beauty and importance of all animals regardless of their appearance, and hopes to share her appreciation with others. Sami's first book, The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals, won the Children's Indie Book of the Year Award and the Australian Book Design Award for Younger Readers. It was a CBCA Honour Book and was shortlisted for an ABIA Book of the Year for Younger Children and longlisted for the ABA Booksellers' Choice 2020 Book of the Year Awards. Her second book, The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Dangerous Animals, was a CBCA Honour Book, an ABIA Book of the Year for Younger Children, won an Australian Book Design Award for Younger Readers and was shortlisted for the Children's Indie Book of the Year 2020. The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Peculiar Pairs was shortlisted for the CBCA Eve Pownall Award and longlisted for Children's Indie Book of the Year Award. Sami's most recent books are How We Came to Be: Surprising Sea Creatures and How We Came to Be: Creatures of Camouflage.