SPACE

Name: SPACE
Author: Sophie Dussaussois
ISBN: 978-1-03632-519-9

From the Pop-Up Guide series

by Sophie Dussaussois ; illustrated by Charline Picard ; translated by Wendeline A. Hardenberg ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021

A quick flyby, too light of payload for serious study but with some potential for display.

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Ten pop-up scenes portray highlights of space exploration, from telescopes to Mars landings, in this French import.

Kitted with elastic bands to hold any of the multilevel painted tableaux open for display, the survey kicks off with a group of ground-based and orbiting telescopes, panoramic views of the planets, and a scanty assortment of satellites (only some of which are identified). From there the focus changes to live space ventures, including moonwalks, inside and outside views of the International Space Station, and, to close, a mix of current and future visitors to Mars. The art has a utilitarian cast overall, and the accompanying labels aren’t always informative (satellite; atmosphere) or easily legible, as they are often printed in black type on the dark blue of outer space. Sometimes, as with the description of a crew sitting in a Soyuz capsule’s interior accompanying an exterior view of the rocket blasting off, they are not even relevant. The sparse narrative text at best gets the job done: “Earth travels around the Sun along with seven other planets. Together, they form our solar system. Some planets are made of rock….” Still, the aptly named but rarely mentioned “RemoveDEBRIS” satellite gets a cameo in one scene, a line-up of launch vehicles past and present is current enough to include the Falcon Heavy and New Shepard, and human figures—at least the ones not wearing spacesuits—reflect the next generation of space explorers in being diverse of age, race, and gender presentation.

A quick flyby, too light of payload for serious study but with some potential for display. (Informational pop-up. 6-8)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-03632-519-9

Page Count: 20

Publisher: Twirl/Chronicle

Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021

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BUTT OR FACE?

by Kari Lavelle ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 11, 2023

A gleeful game for budding naturalists.

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Artfully cropped animal portraits challenge viewers to guess which end they’re seeing.

In what will be a crowd-pleasing and inevitably raucous guessing game, a series of close-up stock photos invite children to call out one of the titular alternatives. A page turn reveals answers and basic facts about each creature backed up by more of the latter in a closing map and table. Some of the posers, like the tail of an okapi or the nose on a proboscis monkey, are easy enough to guess—but the moist nose on a star-nosed mole really does look like an anus, and the false “eyes” on the hind ends of a Cuyaba dwarf frog and a Promethea moth caterpillar will fool many. Better yet, Lavelle saves a kicker for the finale with a glimpse of a small parasitical pearlfish peeking out of a sea cucumber’s rear so that the answer is actually face and butt. “Animal identification can be tricky!” she concludes, noting that many of the features here function as defenses against attack: “In the animal world, sometimes your butt will save your face and your face just might save your butt!” (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A gleeful game for budding naturalists. (author’s note) (Informational picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: July 11, 2023

ISBN: 9781728271170

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore

Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

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by Kari Lavelle ; illustrated by Bryan Collier

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WE MOVE THE WORLD
by Kari Lavelle ; illustrated by Nabi H. Ali

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WHAT IF YOU HAD AN ANIMAL HOME!?

From the What if You Had . . .? series

by Sandra Markle ; illustrated by Howard McWilliam ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 7, 2024

Another playful imagination-stretcher.

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Markle invites children to picture themselves living in the homes of 11 wild animals.

As in previous entries in the series, McWilliam’s illustrations of a diverse cast of young people fancifully imitating wild creatures are paired with close-up photos of each animal in a like natural setting. The left side of one spread includes a photo of a black bear nestling in a cozy winter den, while the right side features an image of a human one cuddled up with a bear. On another spread, opposite a photo of honeybees tending to newly hatched offspring, a human “larva” lounges at ease in a honeycomb cell, game controller in hand, as insect attendants dish up goodies. A child with an eye patch reclines on an orb weaver spider’s web, while another wearing a head scarf constructs a castle in a subterranean chamber with help from mound-building termites. Markle adds simple remarks about each type of den, nest, or burrow and basic facts about its typical residents, then closes with a reassuring reminder to readers that they don’t have to live as animals do, because they will “always live where people live.” A select gallery of traditional homes, from igloo and yurt to mudhif, follows a final view of the young cast waving from a variety of differently styled windows.

Another playful imagination-stretcher. (Informational picture book. 6-8)