Accessible and informative—but look elsewhere to get kids excited about the topic.
This installment in the World Around Us series addresses how humans can affect the environment in good and bad ways.
The most memorable part of this book is the foreword, which describes how the Earth is the only habitable planet we know of, setting the tone for why we humans must take care of it. The text then uses a Q-and-A format, with questions in large, colored display type on the verso and answers (about a half-page paragraph in large type) on the recto. A sidebar on the far right introduces more details about a topic on each spread (for example, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch). Large photographs are set on a lightly patterned pastel background, with drawings of children in various poses filling space around the text and photographs. The text begins with a nature walk during which a child notices litter in the forest, progresses through questions about pollution and what people can do about it, and ends with an emphasis on the sort of innovation and problem-solving that will be needed to save our planet. Unfortunately, the straightforward text does not sustain the level of interest promised by the dramatic foreword; the Q-and-A format works to bring in different topics, but it leaves openings for readers’ minds to wander. While the photographs are well chosen and child-friendly, the drawings distract from rather than add to the presentation.
Accessible and informative—but look elsewhere to get kids excited about the topic. (note, resources) (Informational picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: March 3, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4598-2100-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe.
An introduction to gravity.
The book opens with the most iconic demonstration of gravity, an apple falling. Throughout, Herz tackles both huge concepts—how gravity compresses atoms to form stars and how black holes pull all kinds of matter toward them—and more concrete ones: how gravity allows you to jump up and then come back down to the ground. Gravity narrates in spare yet lyrical verse, explaining how it creates planets and compresses atoms and comparing itself to a hug. “My embrace is tight enough that you don’t float like a balloon, but loose enough that you can run and leap and play.” Gravity personifies itself at times: “I am stubborn—the bigger things are, the harder I pull.” Beautiful illustrations depict swirling planets and black holes alongside racially diverse children playing, running, and jumping, all thanks to gravity. Thorough backmatter discusses how Sir Isaac Newton discovered gravity and explains Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. While at times Herz’s explanations may be a bit too technical for some readers, burgeoning scientists will be drawn in.
An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe. (Informational picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: April 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668936849
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tilbury House
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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