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DR. JENNER AND THE SPECKLED MONSTER

THE SEARCH FOR THE SMALLPOX VACCINE

A compelling twin biography of both Edward Jenner, inventor of the vaccine for smallpox, and of the disease itself. Opening with a graphic description of the ravages of the 1521 smallpox outbreak that toppled the Aztec Empire when Cortés invaded Mexico, the narrative then plumbs the beginnings of the disease in humans, the biology of viruses, and explores the sociocultural impact of smallpox. A discussion of various early methodologies of immunization leads directly into the life and work of the unassuming country surgeon who, in the late–18th century, doggedly pursued a safe and effective means of preventing the disease that regularly visited misery upon the Old World and virtually wiped out whole populations of indigenous peoples in the New. Jenner emerges as a likable and decent man, and a dedicated physician, one whose flexibility of thought and willingness to experiment recognized the immunological ramifications of the fact that milkmaids who had contracted cowpox never seemed to contract smallpox. Marrin (Secrets from the Rocks, p. 339, etc.) ably weaves in the scientific, religious, social, and cultural forces at work in Jenner’s day without ever muddying his main story line. He then brings the story of smallpox right into the present, detailing the eradication of smallpox by the WHO and then discussing its potential impact as a terrorist weapon in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Primary source material is quoted liberally in the text, and although authorship is occasionally indicated when introducing an excerpt, there is no real link between these quotations and the lengthy bibliography and somewhat less lengthy Webliography at the end. This absence of specific source notes and a somewhat histrionic tendency to refer to smallpox as “the Speckled Monster” weaken the whole a bit, but it remains a readable and compelling offering, and presents a nicely detailed companion to Giblin’s When Plague Strikes (1995). (Nonfiction. 10+)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2002

ISBN: 0-525-46922-2

Page Count: 96

Publisher: Dutton

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2002

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50 IMPRESSIVE KIDS AND THEIR AMAZING (AND TRUE!) STORIES

From the They Did What? series

A breezy, bustling bucketful of courageous acts and eye-popping feats.

Why should grown-ups get all the historical, scientific, athletic, cinematic, and artistic glory?

Choosing exemplars from both past and present, Mitchell includes but goes well beyond Alexander the Great, Anne Frank, and like usual suspects to introduce a host of lesser-known luminaries. These include Shapur II, who was formally crowned king of Persia before he was born, Indian dancer/professional architect Sheila Sri Prakash, transgender spokesperson Jazz Jennings, inventor Param Jaggi, and an international host of other teen or preteen activists and prodigies. The individual portraits range from one paragraph to several pages in length, and they are interspersed with group tributes to, for instance, the Nazi-resisting “Swingkinder,” the striking New York City newsboys, and the marchers of the Birmingham Children’s Crusade. Mitchell even offers would-be villains a role model in Elagabalus, “boy emperor of Rome,” though she notes that he, at least, came to an awful end: “Then, then! They dumped his remains in the Tiber River, to be nommed by fish for all eternity.” The entries are arranged in no evident order, and though the backmatter includes multiple booklists, a personality quiz, a glossary, and even a quick Braille primer (with Braille jokes to decode), there is no index. Still, for readers whose fires need lighting, there’s motivational kindling on nearly every page.

A breezy, bustling bucketful of courageous acts and eye-popping feats. (finished illustrations not seen) (Collective biography. 10-13)

Pub Date: May 10, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-14-751813-2

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Puffin

Review Posted Online: Nov. 10, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2015

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THE DUMBEST IDEA EVER!

Humble, endearing and utterly easy to relate to; don’t miss this one.

The charismatic creator of the Eisner-nominated Amelia Rules! series recounts his beginnings as a cartoonist.

From the very first panel, Gownley’s graphic memoir is refreshingly different. He’s not the archetypal nerd, and he doesn’t retreat to draw due to feelings of loneliness or isolation. Gownley seems to be a smart kid and a talented athlete, and he has a loyal group of friends and a girlfriend. After he falls ill, first with chicken pox and then pneumonia, he falls behind in school and loses his head-of-the-class standing—a condition he is determined to reverse. A long-standing love of comics leads him to write his own, though his first attempt is shot down by his best friend, who suggests he should instead write a comic about their group. He does, and it’s an instant sensation. Gownley’s story is wonderful; his small-town life is so vividly evinced, it’s difficult to not get lost in it. While readers will certainly pick up on the nostalgia, it should be refreshing—if not completely alien—for younger readers to see teens interacting without texting, instead using phones with cords. Eagle-eyed readers will also be able to see the beginnings of his well-loved books about Amelia. He includes an author’s note that shouldn’t be overlooked—just be sure to keep the tissues handy.

Humble, endearing and utterly easy to relate to; don’t miss this one. (author’s note) (Graphic memoir. 10 & up)

Pub Date: Feb. 25, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-545-45346-2

Page Count: 240

Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic

Review Posted Online: Nov. 12, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2013

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