A fascinating and (mostly) well-formatted exploration.
This picture book asks readers to imagine having the eyes of various different animals.
“What kind of animal would you be if you had eight eyes?” Turn the page to find out: a jumping spider. What if you had six eyes, each at the end of an arm instead of a hand? What if you had rectangular pupils? Brown-skinned children, one wearing hijab, are pictured modeling the imagined eye structures, interacting with animals and insects, and learning from books and charts. The pattern of asking a question and answering it on the next page works to keep readers engaged, guessing, and turning pages. The pictures of children with extra eyes, moving eyes, antennae, and animalistic pupils are intriguingly bizarre to look at and will likely keep curious children coming back to this book for stares and giggles. The text is fairly lengthy for a picture book and offers profound scientific information; though it is easy to understand, the spidery, thin, cursivelike type that conveys it is a little daunting for youngsters. Unanswered questions are included in the text, showing that science is an ongoing investigation. The backmatter includes simple activities, more about pupils, a glossary, and further reading. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-18.5-inch double-page spreads viewed at 29.5% of actual size.)
A fascinating and (mostly) well-formatted exploration. (Informational picture book. 4-10)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5415-3838-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
Erupt into applause for this picture book of the first magma-tude.
A deceptively simple, visually appealing, comprehensive explanation of volcanoes.
Gibbons packs an impressive number of facts into this browsable nonfiction picture book. The text begins with the awe of a volcanic eruption: “The ground begins to rumble…ash, hot lava and rock, and gases shoot up into the air.” Diagrams of the Earth’s structural layers—inner and outer core, mantle, and crust—undergird a discussion about why volcanoes occur. Simple maps of the Earth’s seven major tectonic plates show where volcanoes are likeliest to develop. Other spreads with bright, clearly labeled illustrations cover intriguing subtopics: four types of volcanoes and how they erupt; underwater volcanoes; well-known volcanoes and historic volcanic eruptions around the world; how to be safe in the vicinity of a volcano; and the work of scientists studying volcanoes and helping to predict eruptions. A page of eight facts about volcanoes wraps things up. The straightforward, concise prose will be easy for young readers to follow. As always, Gibbons manages to present a great deal of information in a compact form.
Erupt into applause for this picture book of the first magma-tude. (Nonfiction picture book. 4-9)Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4569-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again.
Cece loves asking “why” and “what if.”
Her parents encourage her, as does her science teacher, Ms. Curie (a wink to adult readers). When Cece and her best friend, Isaac, pair up for a science project, they choose zoology, brainstorming questions they might research. They decide to investigate whether dogs eat vegetables, using Cece’s schnauzer, Einstein, and the next day they head to Cece’s lab (inside her treehouse). Wearing white lab coats, the two observe their subject and then offer him different kinds of vegetables, alone and with toppings. Cece is discouraged when Einstein won’t eat them. She complains to her parents, “Maybe I’m not a real scientist after all….Our project was boring.” Just then, Einstein sniffs Cece’s dessert, leading her to try a new way to get Einstein to eat vegetables. Cece learns that “real scientists have fun finding answers too.” Harrison’s clean, bright illustrations add expression and personality to the story. Science report inserts are reminiscent of The Magic Schoolbus books, with less detail. Biracial Cece is a brown, freckled girl with curly hair; her father is white, and her mother has brown skin and long, black hair; Isaac and Ms. Curie both have pale skin and dark hair. While the book doesn’t pack a particularly strong emotional or educational punch, this endearing protagonist earns a place on the children’s STEM shelf.
A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again. (glossary) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 19, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-249960-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
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