Everything is relative in this numerically fascinating presentation of records of every kind.
Entranced by statistics? This book is for you.
Minoglio covers Earth and outer space, geography, biology, and human-made structures, along with a grab bag of brain-bending cross-category comparisons. Figures and astonishing facts involving measurements abound, but readers will also find brief explanations, like the difference between tidal waves caused by earthquakes and those caused by landslides. With inventive illustrations from Lord, Minoglio explains which lakes are biggest by surface area and which by volume and why mountain heights vary (it all depends on where they’re measured from). An irresistible spread condenses Earth’s history into 12 hours: Humans arrive in the final two seconds. Other stats involve the human body and population density. In a section devoted to animals, the author compares and contrasts various species on metrics such as size, speed, and endurance records: Which creature can jump the highest? Which can dive underwater the farthest and longest? The author also considers the longest railways, roads, and bridges and the largest buildings and metropolises. A final spread measures pollution and environmental threats. Imperial and metric units are both provided. Laudably, Minoglio chooses to make comparisons with everyday objects; the Goliath birdeater tarantula is “bigger than your plate and almost as heavy as a pizza,” for instance. Readers will need to be familiar with multiplication to grasp some size correlations. The book’s realistic, colorful graphics in well-designed layouts are creative, attractive, and enlightening.
Everything is relative in this numerically fascinating presentation of records of every kind. (index) (Nonfiction. 7-14)Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026
ISBN: 9783039641017
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Helvetiq
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
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
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