An admiring, respectful treatment of a highly accomplished scientist.
A brilliant astronomer set her sights high.
Vera Rubin, the child and grandchild of Jewish immigrants, was always fascinated by stars; by age 10, she knew she wanted to become an astronomer. But few colleges permitted women to study astronomy. Vassar did and offered her a scholarship. A brilliant student, she breezed through her courses and subsequently earned master’s and PhD degrees. Vera’s next challenge was to gain access to huge observatory telescopes, since men had priority. She scored a major victory, though: Due to her stellar reputation, the scientists at California’s Palomar Observatory broke their rule about barring women from using their powerful telescope, and she became the first woman to observe there. Vera made a huge breakthrough when she proved that stars on the outer edges of spiral galaxies moved at the same speed as those near the center. Other astronomers dismissed her findings, but Vera realized that an invisible force was causing this phenomenon: dark matter. More women in STEM fields should be brought to young readers’ attention; this is a well-written, absorbing portrait of a brilliant female scientist in a particularly male-dominated field. Quotes from Rubin are sprinkled throughout, like stars. The illustrations, created with hand-painted watercolor washes and ink lines that were enhanced digitally, have a “cosmic” feel to them, with lots of night-sky purple, swirling planets, and starlike points of color.
An admiring, respectful treatment of a highly accomplished scientist. (author’s note, Dr. Rubin’s dark matter discovery, timeline, bibliography, photos, photo credits) (Picture-book biography. 7-10)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781635926019
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Calkins Creek/Astra Books for Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe.
An introduction to gravity.
The book opens with the most iconic demonstration of gravity, an apple falling. Throughout, Herz tackles both huge concepts—how gravity compresses atoms to form stars and how black holes pull all kinds of matter toward them—and more concrete ones: how gravity allows you to jump up and then come back down to the ground. Gravity narrates in spare yet lyrical verse, explaining how it creates planets and compresses atoms and comparing itself to a hug. “My embrace is tight enough that you don’t float like a balloon, but loose enough that you can run and leap and play.” Gravity personifies itself at times: “I am stubborn—the bigger things are, the harder I pull.” Beautiful illustrations depict swirling planets and black holes alongside racially diverse children playing, running, and jumping, all thanks to gravity. Thorough backmatter discusses how Sir Isaac Newton discovered gravity and explains Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. While at times Herz’s explanations may be a bit too technical for some readers, burgeoning scientists will be drawn in.
An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe. (Informational picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: April 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668936849
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tilbury House
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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