What is an idiom? It's a turn of phrase designed to convey a meaning which is different from the literal meaning of the words. But this is a fun take on the subject.

Artist and writer Steve Palin has combined another of his passions: his love of animals, birds and insects - to come up with a delightful book in which he has illustrated and explained his favourite wildlife idioms.

Cat among the pigeons, big fish in a small pond, a kangaroo court - these idioms have inspired some of his joyous paintings in this book, each paired with his short explanation of how the term came to be used.

Hours of fun guessing what the idiom depicted is, with the answer on the following page!