The book begins with the discovery of a large number of deformed frogs by schoolteacher Cindy Reinitz and her students in August 1995.

Concerned about the possibility that a contaminant in the water caused the deformities, Reinitz contacted the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).

At the time, Helgen was studying frogs as part of an effort to develop a bio-index for measuring the overall health of a pond or wetland.

But as more reports of frog deformities came from the rest of the state, they grew concerned and called the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

When he did go, he was very surprised, as the Bocks lived on a relatively large natural lake, rather than on a small farm pond, where others had reported deformed frogs.

The story then takes a detour and discusses the findings of Martin Ouellet, a French-Canadian biologist who was studying the effect of agricultural chemicals on frogs in the St. Lawrence River valley.

Modern farming techniques rely on a large variety of chemicals, whose breakdown and effect on the environment is still virtually unknown.

Bill McKibben of The Washington Monthly had a favorable view of Souder's methodology: "This is a revealing and important book, and you should begin by ignoring the subtitle.

Something tells me it was not the author's choice: In fact, he's done a remarkably sober and meticulous job of following a story that's been misreported in almost every newspaper and on every TV station in the country.

I also recommend this book to professional audiences, including undergraduates and early graduate students who still harbor illusions that science proceeds the way it is described in textbooks."

Annie Stewart of The Ecologist also appreciated the book's tone: "Souder manages to make frogs as fascinating to the casual reader as they are to the scientists who study them."

Ilse Heidmann of the Library Journal had a slightly negative review: "While Souder's reporting is exhaustive, it is also repetitious and tiresome at times.