Squeamish adults may look away, but kids who aren’t grossed out will be riveted.
In this icky and instructive book, poop preoccupation pulls readers into a world of science.
Sanchez sings the splendors of scat: It helps disperse seeds, offers a method of coded communication, and is a source of fertilization and even nutrition. The importance of excrement-related research by biologists and others comes through in clear detail, while stories enliven the narrative—for instance, Sanchez includes a poignant account of the extinction of passenger pigeons (which “fertilized their own habitat…and maintained the balance of life in their ecosystem”). Throughout, the author strikes a note of caution about climate change, observing that scat can help scientists who study the crisis affecting our planet. Writing in precise but conversational prose, Sanchez defines uncommon words (in bold) contextually and in an appended glossary. Frequent “Scat Science” sidebars offer essential and fascinating facts on everything from DNA to camouflage. Kids will love adding dung, frass, and guano to their vocabulary. Broken into well-organized chapters, the work closes with a mini-guide to identifying local animal deposits, complementing several sidebars on neighborhood scat. Abundant and alternately amusing, disgustingly detailed, and downright adorable color photos often catch animals producing and using wonderful waste. Excretion excitement is everywhere in this enthusiastic and informative book, which holds its nose, looks closely, and widens its range to “help us make a better Earth.”
Squeamish adults may look away, but kids who aren’t grossed out will be riveted. (bibliography, source notes, photo credits, index) (Nonfiction. 8-12)Pub Date: April 1, 2025
ISBN: 9780823456185
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: today
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
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
Contentwise, an arbitrary assortment…but sure to draw fans of comics, of science, or of both.
Flash, Batman, and other characters from the DC Comics universe tackle supervillains and STEM-related topics and sometimes, both.
Credited to 20 writers and illustrators in various combinations, the 10 episodes invite readers to tag along as Mera and Aquaman visit oceanic zones from epipelagic to hadalpelagic; Supergirl helps a young scholar pick a science-project topic by taking her on a tour of the solar system; and Swamp Thing lends Poison Ivy a hand to describe how DNA works (later joining Swamp Kid to scuttle a climate-altering scheme by Arcane). In other episodes, various costumed creations explain the ins and outs of diverse large- and small-scale phenomena, including electricity, atomic structure, forensic techniques, 3-D printing, and the lactate threshold. Presumably on the supposition that the characters will be more familiar to readers than the science, the minilectures tend to start from simple basics, but the figures are mostly both redrawn to look more childlike than in the comics and identified only in passing. Drawing styles and page designs differ from chapter to chapter but not enough to interrupt overall visual unity and flow—and the cast is sufficiently diverse to include roles for superheroes (and villains) of color like Cyborg, Kid Flash, and the Latina Green Lantern, Jessica Cruz. Appended lists of websites and science-based YouTube channels, plus instructions for homespun activities related to each episode, point inspired STEM-winders toward further discoveries.
Contentwise, an arbitrary assortment…but sure to draw fans of comics, of science, or of both. (Graphic nonfiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Feb. 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77950-382-4
Page Count: 160
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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