The Spider Lady, Penny Parker Klostermann
The Spider Lady, Penny Parker Klostermann
List: $7.99 | Sale: $5.60
Club: $3.99

The Spider Lady
Nan Songer and her Arachnid WWII Army

Author: Penny Parker Klostermann

Narrator: Nan McNamara

Unabridged: 20 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 05/06/2025

Synopsis

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 over flowed 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. "Weaves an impressive story of arachnid accomplishment."—Kirkus Reviews

Reviews

Goodreads review by Meghan on May 11, 2025

I read this the day after Jellyfish Scientist: Maude Delap and Her Mesmerizing Medusas and I love the (mini) trend of unsung female scientists (that’s what they were, degree or no) working with invertebrates! Thank you to Astra Publishing House and NetGalley for the ARC!......more

Goodreads review by Jan on February 19, 2025

This nonfiction well illustrated book is the story of one amateur entomologist who made a significant contribution to fighting the second World War with her overwhelming interest in spiders which led to an intense study of their silk which was put to important use during WW2. It is written in story......more

Goodreads review by Susan on May 01, 2025

A botanist neighbor encouraged young Nan Songer to pursue her deep interest in bug and spiders. Nan brought live specimens into her bedroom and, later, as an adult, into her whole home to study. When she learned that spider silk was used for crosshairs in surveying scopes, she wondered whether she c......more

Goodreads review by Panda on February 24, 2025

This picture book biography introduces readers to Nan Songer, a self-taught scientist who helped the war effort in WWII by harvesting spider silks and experimenting with different ways to improve the quality, variety, and consistency of what she could offer to the war manufacturers using these mater......more

Goodreads review by Sara on March 25, 2025

This was an interesting book about a topic I had never heard of before. During World War 2, there was a great push to help the war effort; buying bonds, growing victory gardens, scrap metal drives. I had never heard about the need for spider silk in the war effort. This children's story relates the......more

Add to Cart
Add to Wish List