A lyrical soundscape that leaves room for observation and makes space for scientific discussion.
Four children in different countries hear a plethora of sounds in their natural surroundings.
As they explore the great outdoors, the two boys and two girls of varying ethnicities are told to “listen. / Hear. / Cup your ear.” They take note of the sounds made by the human body, the weather, various animals, and even a fiery volcano. On a farm in the USA, there is the “whistle, whir” of birds singing and flying past and the “screech and howl” of an owl and woodland foxes in the adjacent woods. In a tropical jungle in Brazil, there is the “drip, drop, drum” of rain and the “roar and WHOOSH” of a nearby waterfall. Readers are also transported to an alpine meadow filled with the “chomp and chew” of grazing cows and to a riverfront town in South Africa where the “slosh and lap” of waves greets the ear. Finally, as the day comes to an end and the kids return indoors to read and paint before going to bed, other sounds emerge: “whisper, / shush, / slumber, hush. / Purr, / snore, / sounds…no more.” The spare, rhyming text, consisting largely (but not exclusively) of onomatopoeic words, is enhanced by colorful, panoramic, scenic illustrations created with mixed media and Photoshop. The backmatter includes two pages of detailed information about “The Science of Sounds,” complete with “FUN FACT” sidelights and textbooklike diagrams of the human ear and human vocal cords.
A lyrical soundscape that leaves room for observation and makes space for scientific discussion. (Picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: March 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5415-9869-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner
Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Engaging, well-chosen images and a clear, coherent text illuminate the importance of empathy for the world’s inhabitants.
Large color photographs (occasionally composed of montages) and accessible, simple text highlight global similarities and differences, always focusing on our universal connections.
While child readers may not recognize Manzano, the Puerto Rican actress who played Maria on Sesame Street, adults will recognize her as a trusted diverse voice. In her endnote, she explains her desire to “encourage lively conversations about shared experiences.” Starting out with the familiar, home and community, the text begins with “How many WONDERFUL PEOPLE do you know?” Then it moves out to the world: “Did you know there are about 8 BILLION PEOPLE on the planet?” The photo essay features the usual concrete similarities and differences found in many books of this type, such as housing (a Mongolian yurt opposite a Hong Kong apartment building overlooking a basketball court), food (dumplings, pizza, cotton candy, a churro, etc.), and school. Manzano also makes sure to point out likenesses in emotions, as shown in a montage of photos from countries including China, Spain, Kashmir (Pakistan/India), and the United States. At the end, a world map and thumbnail images show the locations of all photos, revealing a preponderance of examples from the U.S. and a slight underrepresentation for Africa and South America.
Engaging, well-chosen images and a clear, coherent text illuminate the importance of empathy for the world’s inhabitants. (Informational picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4263-3738-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: National Geographic Kids
Review Posted Online: May 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2020
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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