A deep dive with appeal for those who are passionate about science and marine animals.
Follow an octopus scientist around the world to learn about the fascinating lives of these enigmatic cephalopods.
Drawing on 25 years’ experience as a marine biologist, David Scheel explores the natural history and behavior of octopuses to better understand their motivations and priorities. This work delves into his efforts to locate, track, and study octopuses, offering plenty of firsthand observations and information about approximately 20 species. This densely packed text will be most inviting to readers with a solid science background and an interest in marine science. Despite being slimmer than the original adult edition, this volume is still jampacked with detailed anecdotes, references to relevant research, and thoughtful insights. Many chapters conclude by posing questions that scientists have yet to answer. The narrative also includes discussion of the detrimental effects of the climate crisis on octopus species. Much of Scheel’s work has been concentrated in Alaska, and throughout the book he credits and expresses thanks to the Indigenous people who shared knowledge and experience that aided his work as a researcher and writer. Detailed black-and-white line drawings by the author’s daughter include a few anatomically specific illustrations and convey the beauty of octopuses as well as their behavior. Additional visual aids—charts and photos of species and habitats—would have provided a richer reading experience for readers.
A deep dive with appeal for those who are passionate about science and marine animals. (map, glossary, source notes, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Jan. 14, 2025
ISBN: 9781324019992
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Norton Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change.
Testa’s connection to and respect for nature compelled her to begin championing animal causes at the age of 10, and this desire to have an impact later propelled her to dedicate her life to fighting plastic pollution. Starting with the history of plastic and how it’s produced, Testa acknowledges the benefits of plastics for humanity but also the many ways it harms our planet. Instead of relying on recycling—which is both insufficient and ineffective—she urges readers to follow two additional R’s: “refuse” and “raise awareness.” Readers are encouraged to do their part, starting with small things like refusing to use plastic straws and water bottles and eventually working up to using their voices to influence business and policy change. In the process, she highlights other youth advocates working toward the same cause. Short chapters include personal examples, such as observations of plastic pollution in Mauritius, her maternal grandparents’ birthplace. Testa makes her case not only against plastic pollution, but also for the work she’s done, resulting in something of a college-admissions–essay tone. Nevertheless, the first-person accounts paired with science will have an impact on readers. Unfortunately, no sources are cited and the lack of backmatter is a missed opportunity.
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22333-8
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
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