The Secret Jobs of Backyard Creatures
The Secret Jobs of Ocean Creatures
For the kid who's "bored" by 4pm — and the backyard that's been hiring all along.
Right now there's a Chief Soil Restructuring Officer working under your lawn, an air-traffic crew in the flowerbed, and an entire waste-management team in the compost heap.
Your child just hasn't met them yet. This book handles the introductions. 50 creatures, 50 creative job titles, and one garden they'll never call boring again.
-
50 creatures, 50 ridiculous job titles
real backyard biology, told the way kids actually want to hear it -
A seek-and-find hiding inside a field guide
3 hidden objects and a riddle on every spread -
Secretly educational
pollination, decomposition, soil engineering… smuggled in through jokes -
Funny enough to read aloud, rich enough to revisit
ages 6–10, one book for the whole family
60-Day Money-Back Guarantee
Customer's Reviews
🔍 Can you spot the ladybird?
For the kid who's “bored” by 4pm
There's a whole workforce outside your door — and nobody told your kid
The garden path. The compost heap. That dark patch under the porch. All of it fully staffed — foreman beetles, air-traffic bees, a Chief Soil Restructuring Officer clocking in under the lawn. Open to any page and the backyard stops being boring. It becomes the funniest, most fascinating place on earth.
↓ Meet the seven departments below
🔍 3 objects hidden on every page
A field guide in disguise
They think it's a joke book. It's a biology lesson.
Every double-page spread hides three objects to find, a riddle to crack, and one creature's ridiculous job title. Kids race to spot the hidden objects. They laugh at the field notes. And somewhere in the middle — without ever noticing — they learn what a worm actually does all day. No textbook language. Just kid-friendly writing and golden-age watercolour art that pulls them in before they've read a word.
50 creatures · 125 full-colour pages · 3 hidden objects per spread
The gift that beats a screen
When you don't know what to gift, give them the backyard
Birthdays, holidays, “just because” — this is the gift that gets opened, read at the dinner table, and quoted back at you for weeks. Large format, built to be dipped into: every creature is self-contained, so there's no losing your place and no pressure to finish. One book, hours away from a screen.
🎁 Most parents order two — one to keep, one to gift
Secret Jobs · Real Readers
4.8★
From verified readers
50
Illustrated creature profiles
3
Hidden objects on every spread
60-Day
Money-back guarantee
Why it works
Real nature, organised like a workplace comedy
Fifty creatures across seven departments — because “ecosystem” is a boring word, but “Compost & Waste Management, night shift” is hilarious. And what makes them laugh is what they remember.
FROM THE BOOK
Job title: Chief Soil Restructuring Officer. Department: Underground Works. Status: probably beneath your feet right now.
🌅
Dawn Patrol
The early risers who open the garden while your kid is still asleep.
🐝
Pollination & Air Traffic
The flight crews keeping every flower in business.
🪲
Underground Works
The engineers restructuring the soil beneath your feet.
🍂
Compost & Waste Management
The clean-up crew that lets nothing go to waste.
🐞
Pest Control & Security
The garden's quiet defence force, on duty around the clock.
🕸
Construction & Engineering
Web-spinners, nest-builders and master architects.
🌙
Midnight Operations
The night shift your kid never knew existed.
📖
…and 50 staff to meet
Every creature gets a job title, field notes, and a specimen card.
Open the covers
125 pages of very serious business
✓
50 fully illustrated creature profiles
Every creature gets its own two-page spread — official job title, field notes, jokes, and real observations.
✓
Golden-age watercolour art
Warm, semi-realistic illustrations that pull kids into the page before they've read a single word.
✓
3 hidden objects on every spread
A seek-and-find built into the art — plus chapter creatures hiding throughout the book.
✓
Riddles & jokes throughout
Short, quick reads perfect for ages 6–10 — and funny enough that adults keep reading too.
✓
A specimen card for every creature
Common name, real scientific name, and official job title — like a naturalist's field tag.
✓
Built to be dipped into
Every creature is self-contained. Start anywhere, stop anywhere, never lose your place.
What you'll hear at dinner
The lines parents tell us their kids repeat after a week with the book.
“Mum. Did you know worms are basically engineers?”
“The compost heap has a whole TEAM.”
“I found the hidden beetle before Dad did.”
From the author
Written by a mum who had to make nature compete with a tablet
Claire Monroe homeschools two nature-obsessed kids — which means every page of this book was field-tested on the toughest audience there is. Her rule: if it doesn't make her kids laugh, look up, or run outside to check for themselves, it doesn't go in.
The Secret Jobs of Backyard Creatures is Book 1 of the Secret Animal Jobs series — the ocean edition is already a family favourite.
Mum of 2Homeschooling family
Book 1 of 2Secret Animal Jobs series
4.8★Reader rating
Reader reviews
4.8
★★★★★
Fascinating facts presented in fun format
As a retired science teacher and grandmother I am always looking for something that brings out the fun in learning, and this book certainly has the potential. What a great tool to begin a scavenger hunt in the backyard and spend quality family time together! I found myself as an adult looking up additional facts about these bugs to satisfy my own curiosity. The Seek and Find and bug jokes are great touches!
Leslie Dougherty Verified Purchase
★★★★★
Simple, educational, beautiful
On each page there are a few facts about each creature, their common name, scientific name, and job title, a joke, and some hidden images to find. This book is great for kids who get overwhelmed by books with “too many words.” My daughters, 7 and 11, both loved it, and so did I! We homeschool and I love finding educational books that teach my kids while we have fun.
Owen Verified Purchase
★★★★★
Very fun and informative book
This is a great book for kids! My kiddo doesn't like reading much but she is truly enjoying this book. Although it's packed with education it is not overwhelming to her — truly holds her interest. I homeschool and this book is an amazing help in a fun way, not like public school science books. I highly recommend it.
Krista Walkley Verified Purchase
★★★★★
Interactive for kids as young as 2
The most loved aspect was my kids using a little magnifier glass to find what was asked at the bottom of each page. The little jokes were fun and memorable — they wanted me to tell them all through the day. They'll pick this book up at any time of day. Now that I have the ebook, I have to have the hard copy too. It's a favorite.
Sarah Jagnarine Verified Purchase
★★★★★
This is a very interesting book even for adults!
My grandkids enjoy looking at this book and learning that each creature has its own job — even if we can't see the “work” happening below the surface.
DAT Verified Purchase
★★★★★
Educational with a side of laughter and mystery
The illustrations are adorable, the hidden pictures an extra bonus to keep the kids engaged while reading, the facts are easy to absorb, and the jokes are simple enough the kids understand. Such a fun book!
Cassie McMurry Verified Purchase
★★★★★
An inquisitor's delight!
This is a MUST have for curious little minds! The book makes it fun to learn about these creatures and the illustrations are phenomenal.
Nicole Spurlock Verified Purchase
★★★★★
My grandson loves it
Bought this for my 7 year old grandson. It is his favorite book.
Lori Parker Verified Purchase
★★★★
Fun book!
Fun book. We enjoyed learning about the garden creatures. We especially enjoyed the seek and find at the bottom of the pages — sometimes we had to go back a page to find the thing we were looking for, but we figured it out after a while.
Matthew D. Brand Verified Purchase
★★★★
Great information and illustration
A very sweet book. Wonderful illustrations, hidden objects to find, short passages to read. A great way for children to begin exploring the outside world. Children younger than 6 would also enjoy this if someone read it to them.
Cindy Riley Verified Purchase
★★★★
Good book for kids who enjoy the outdoors
A lot of information is included! I can see kids who enjoy being outdoors and kids who enjoy “creepy crawlies” really enjoying this book.
Kyle Stone Verified Purchase
★★★★★
Wonderful book!
Loved this book! Illustrations are adorable and it's really engaging for my son. It has jokes and little things to find on the pages. It makes learning so fun, I even learned some things too! Also makes bugs not seem so scary if you have a little one afraid of them.
AubryVerified Purchase
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Is this a textbook?
No — and that's the point. There's no textbook language anywhere. It's real, accurate nature (how decomposing, pollinating and soil engineering actually work) delivered through job titles, field notes, riddles and jokes. Kids remember it because it made them laugh.
What age is it really for?
The sweet spot is 6–10. Younger kids (from about 5) love it as a read-aloud and seek-and-find; confident readers from about 7 devour it independently. Parents regularly report reading ahead after bedtime.
My child won't sit still for long books.
This one is designed to be dipped into. Every creature is a self-contained two-page spread — start anywhere, stop anywhere. And the three hidden objects on each page give restless kids something to hunt while they read.
Will my kid actually learn anything?
Yes — the book is honest about how nature works. Composting, pollination, soil aeration, night-time garden life — all real, all accurate, each creature tagged with its true scientific name on its specimen card. The comedy is just the delivery system.
How big is the book?
125 pages in a large 8.5" × 11" full-colour format — big enough for two kids to look at one spread together, which happens a lot.
Is this a good gift?
It's the birthday gift that doesn't get re-gifted — which is why our Buy Two bundle (one for home, one to gift) is the most popular option, and it comes with free printable extras.
How long does shipping take?
Orders are dispatched within 48 hours with free tracked shipping. Delivery estimates are shown at checkout for your region.
What's your return policy?
A 60-day money-back guarantee. If the book doesn't earn its place on your shelf, contact us and we'll make it right.
Money-Back Guarantee
We're so confident in the quality of our product that we offer a satisfaction guarantee. If you're not completely satisfied with your purchase, simply return the item within 60 days for a full refund.
Buy Now! Risk Free!
100% Satisfaction
Fast Shipping
Easy Returns
Money-Back Guarantee
We're so confident in the quality of our product that we offer a satisfaction guarantee. If you're not completely satisfied with your purchase, simply return the item within 60 days for a full refund.
Buy Now! Risk Free!
100% Satisfaction
Fast Shipping
Easy Returns