Crabnapped! A land hermit crab story

I wrote a book about land hermit crabs for kids. It’s called “Crabnapped! A land hermit crab story”.  It’s a story about land hermit crabs that are kidnapped off the beach in Broome, Western Australia.

They are shipped by courier to a pet store in Sydney, New South Wales, where they are placed into a hermit crab habitat with temperature and humidity far different to their tropical home. They are very sad and homesick, and dig down as far as they can to hide.

When choosing an illustrator, I lucked out and struck gold with Anastasia Obrucicova. who is an amazing artist and has created some fantastic illustrations. At every illustration reveal, I felt like a child at Christmas!

I love the feel and weight of a hardcover, but the book will also be published in paperback via Amazon self-publishing in paperback and eBook via Kindle. I will be donating some copies to local libraries, and you will be able to request that your library order it in.

I’d love to help change the fate of land hermit crabs that are seen as starter or throwaway pets by the pet industry. They are tropical land hermit crabs and need stable temperature and humidity, enough substrate to moult in, places to hide, seashells to wear and a diet and tank hygiene to make them happy hermit crabs.

In 1976, when I was 5, I found a land hermit crab on the beach. My great-grandfather wrote a poem about the encounter. I wanted to take it home, but he said it wouldn’t survive. A wise man indeed.

Back in 1995, I saw them in Warrawong Pet Store and purchased two, then created a one-page website on my land hermit crabs, and it changed my life forever.

In writing the book, I had the help of my great-uncle, Geoff Pike, who encouraged me to write a children’s book from the heart. He helped in many ways, including creating hermit crab character names and plot lines, and supported me in my dream to write a book that doesn’t just entertain but also educates people on the amazing and interestiing land hermit crabs. Sadly, he passed away several years before it was published, but I am sure he would be proud. Geoff Pike was the brains behind the Cadbury Yowie World and a series of books that educated children and adults about the common, rare, endangered and extinct animals of Australia and worldwide.

Every purchase of Crabnapped will include a $2 donation to Hermit House.

AUSTRALIAN readers can now purchase the paperback version on Amazon Australia directly [BUY HERE]

If you prefer a hardcover version (recommended) you can buy it through Amazon UK  [BUY HERE]

Readers in the USA and other nations can purchase Crabnapped via Amazon USA [BUY HERE], which unfortunately doesn’t ship hardcovers to Australia.

If you’re reading this and you’re a teacher, please reach out as I am offering a free PDF of my book for educational purposes and I have lesson plans available for your use for free! [EMAIL ME]