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US AIR FORCE ALPHABET BOOK

From the Jerry Pallotta's Alphabet Books series

Readers eager to distinguish bombers from missiles will be pleased.

An A-to-Z visual glossary of terminology, planes, and history of the U.S. Air Force.

This alphabet book is heavy on airplane specifics and flight jargon. “F is for Fighter Jet,” and the accompanying text and images outline five specific jets, including the F-15 Eagle, which flies at nearly 2,000 miles per hour. “P is for Planes” includes a look at vehicles such as the KC-135, the Spectre, and the E-8D Joint STARS, while “I is for Insignia” features a chart displaying badges and ranks for Air Force personnel. The artwork includes photographs (some historical) and images that include elements that look painted or drawn. The layouts are visually appealing and well balanced. Figures depicted are diverse, but other than the Tuskegee Airmen, there is no discussion of people of color in the Air Force. Adults and children alike stand to learn plenty from this title given the range of topics, terms, and history covered, though the level of detail and content make this most appropriate for readers seeking in-depth information on the Air Force rather than those in search of a simple alphabet book for young children. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Readers eager to distinguish bombers from missiles will be pleased. (Informational picture book. 6-9)

Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023

ISBN: 9781570919527

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Charlesbridge

Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023

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DO NOT LICK THIS BOOK

Science at its best: informative and gross.

Why not? Because “IT’S FULL OF GERMS.”

Of course, Ben-Barak rightly notes, so is everything else—from your socks to the top of Mount Everest. Just to demonstrate, he invites readers to undertake an exploratory adventure (only partly imaginary): First touch a certain seemingly blank spot on the page to pick up a microbe named Min, then in turn touch teeth, shirt, and navel to pick up Rae, Dennis, and Jake. In the process, readers watch crews of other microbes digging cavities (“Hey kid, brush your teeth less”), spreading “lovely filth,” and chowing down on huge rafts of dead skin. For the illustrations, Frost places dialogue balloons and small googly-eyed cartoon blobs of diverse shape and color onto Rundgren’s photographs, taken using a scanning electron microscope, of the fantastically rugged surfaces of seemingly smooth paper, a tooth, textile fibers, and the jumbled crevasses in a belly button. The tour concludes with more formal introductions and profiles for Min and the others: E. coli, Streptococcus, Aspergillus niger, and Corynebacteria. “Where will you take Min tomorrow?” the author asks teasingly. Maybe the nearest bar of soap.

Science at its best: informative and gross. (Informational picture book. 6-9)

Pub Date: June 5, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-250-17536-6

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Neal Porter/Roaring Brook

Review Posted Online: April 15, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2018

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THE BRAIN IS KIND OF A BIG DEAL

A good overview of this complex, essential organ, with an energetic seasoning of silliness.

An introduction to the lead guitar and vocalist for the Brainiacs—the human brain.

The brain (familiar to readers of Seluk’s “The Awkward Yeti” webcomic, which spun off the adult title Heart and Brain, 2015) looks like a dodgeball with arms and legs—pinkish, sturdy, and roundish, with a pair of square-framed spectacles bestowing an air of importance and hipness. Other organs of the body—tongue, lungs, stomach, muscle, and heart—are featured as members of the brain’s rock band (the verso of the dust jacket is a poster of the band). Seluk’s breezy, conversational prose and brightly colored, boldly outlined cartoon illustrations deliver basic information. The brain’s role in keeping the heart beating and other automatic functions, directing body movements, interpreting sights and sounds, remembering smells and tastes, and regulating sleep and hunger are all explained, prose augmented by dialogue balloons and information sidebars. Seluk points out, importantly, that feelings originate in the brain: “You can control how you react…but your feelings happen no matter what.” The parodied album covers on the front endpapers (including the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Green Day, Run DMC, Queen, Nirvana) will amuse parents—or at least grandparents—and the rear endpapers serve up band members’ clever social media and texting screenshots. Backmatter includes a glossary and further brain trivia but no resources or bibliography.

A good overview of this complex, essential organ, with an energetic seasoning of silliness. (Informational picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-338-16700-9

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic

Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019

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