The catalogue of villains, plunderers and Nextincters of Distinction, real and unreal, displayed in all their unglory.

Ceri: We should write about the birds that are next in line for extinction Ralph: The next in line for extinction...are waiting for...nextinction! What led to this exchange was the moment Jim Martin, the editor at Bloomsbury, called Ceri and said "I think it's high time that you and Ralph did another book, so have a think about what the book could be. Get your thinking caps on and get back to me! Cheerio!" Many potential ideas had been trawled through until suddenly it flashed up that a positive book was needed about present day problems, a book that could show that all is not futile. So many species have become endangered far too easily. Creatures and monsters that thrive through this era of extinction are the banks, supermarkets, shopping malls, corporate entities and organisations who should be putting more into the world in return for their role in the decimation of so much nature, which threatens not only our wildlife but mankind itself. Nextinction takes a more positive spin as in principle it is about the birds that can be saved.The nextinct birds teeter on the brink and Ceri and Ralph share their stories in the pages of Nextinction. There is a chance that many of them can be pulled from the darkness and returned to the light.

When Ralph and Ceri were wondering about creating a third book they looked back at their previous works, Extinct Boids and Nextinction, and they couldn't see what else they could give to the world of birds. All that was left were the healthy and un-endangered species, and that didn't seem to fit their conservation ethos. And then it hit them, why not bring their tale-telling, tall and truthful, to all other endangered creatures out there? From lions, tigers and bears, through to whales, beetles, bees and snakes, there were a whole host of new stories to uncover, and once more humans were at the heart of the problem. Ralph and Ceri decided there and then to champion the challenged animals of the world. They would stick up for CRITICAL CRITTERS!!! Here you can learn about more than 100 critically endangered animals, sign up for the Gonzovation Newsletter and find useful links to charities and organisations which work on land, sea and in the air trying to help these species whose numbers have been brought so low by invariably, human interference.

"What is a Gonzovationist?" you ask. A Gonzovationist is someone inspired to stand up for the natural world by performing Acts of Gonzovation. Pick up litter; plant some wild flowers; join a conservation group. Do whatever you can to stand up for the planet and every creature that depends on its survival for theirs. The Gonzovation Army is growing and here are some of the Generals, Colonels and Privates you may recognise.

Steadman's first collaboration with fellow Gonzovationist and co-conspirator, Ceri Levy, is a beautifully illustrated study of extinct birds of the world. Mixed amongst these wondrous creatures are boids of wild abandon as Ralph never could keep quite on the straight and narrow. They mingle with the true lost birds of planet Earth and hopefully all co-exist on a figment of Ceri and Ralph's imagination - that is the miraculous Toadstool Island where all lost things go. Fairly sure my missing socks are there too!