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HOW DO YOU MAKE A BABY?

Name: HOW DO YOU MAKE A BABY?
Author: Anna Fiske
ISBN: 978-1-776572-85-4

by Anna Fiske ; illustrated by Anna Fiske ; translated by Don Bartlett ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 4, 2020

Answers an often difficult question with humor and even grace.

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Finally: a “where do babies come from” book that doesn’t mince words—or pictures. This frank, cartoon-illustrated picture book answers its titular question with Scandinavian directness. “People in love enjoy being as close as possible. They hug, kiss and touch each other.” So far this is much like many others of its ilk, but then: “To get even closer they take off their clothes and hug. When Papa’s penis is in Mama’s vagina they’re as close as two people can be.” Illustrating this is a goofy cartoon of nude sexual partners, the penis uttering a cheery “Hello!” and the vagina responding, “Come in!” It’s as far from prurient as can be imagined. In vitro fertilization and the unpredictable timeline of typical fertilization are both addressed before the book moves on to pregnancy and birth, the latter of which is visually presented as directly as intercourse was. Internal views of swimming sperm and gestating babies speak to the science of conception and pregnancy. Adults and babies are racially diverse; while the emphasis is on opposite-sex partnership and parenthood, same-sex couples are present in both text and pictures. Gender identity goes unmentioned, as does gestational surrogacy, and the one page on adoption cannot begin to encompass its complexity. The text’s mild cheekiness balances the informational load and should ease shared read-alouds in families unaccustomed to this book’s straightforwardness. Answers an often difficult question with humor and even grace. (Informational picture book. 8-12)

Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-776572-85-4

Page Count: 80

Publisher: Gecko Press

Review Posted Online: July 27, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020

Categories:

CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S HEALTH & DAILY LIVING | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

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IT'S CATCHING

THE INFECTIOUS WORLD OF GERMS AND MICROBES

by Jennifer Gardy ; illustrated by Josh Holinaty ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 15, 2014

Infectious.

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A slim volume about a small protagonist.

Narrated by Jennifer the “disease detective,” this roll call of germs makes for fascinating reading. Readers can dip in anywhere and be glad they’re only reading and not actually coming into contact with parasites, influenza, rabies, Ebola and malaria. The book introduces readers to the microbial world and discusses its study before going on to describe broad classifications and then home in on some marquee specifics. Sanitation, antibiotics—and the unexpected consequences of their overuse—genetics, and public-health careers and interventions round out the surprisingly complete coverage of the topic. Gardy and Holinaty have a good sense of the ideal delivery for a middle-grade audience: No one would want to be in the path of the “super sneeze” and the “speedy snot” depicted in one joyfully gross cartoon. Full of colorful illustrations, graphs and charts, the volume covers much ground, not only describing germs, but discussing the science behind them as well. The combination of clear, matter-of-fact text and lively design makes this a slender study that’s big on information.

Infectious. (index) (Nonfiction. 8-12)

Pub Date: April 15, 2014

ISBN: 978-1-77147-001-8

Page Count: 64

Publisher: Owlkids Books

Review Posted Online: Feb. 18, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HEALTH & DAILY LIVING | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
IT TAKES GUTS
by Jennifer Gardy ; illustrated by Belle Wuthrich

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WHEN LUNCH FIGHTS BACK

WICKEDLY CLEVER ANIMAL DEFENSES

by Rebecca L. Johnson ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 2014

Thrilling reading for budding biologists.

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Here’s blood in your eye.

Along with the ever popular hagfish (aka “snot eel”) and the horned lizard—which can indeed squirt blood from one or both eyes—Johnson (Zombie Makers: True Stories of Nature’s Undead, 2012, etc.) profiles 10 animals with particularly noxious defense mechanisms. Likewise introducing researchers who have helped to provide “the science behind the story,” she explains the nature of each defense and, in simple but specific language, the biology that makes it work. Large color photos feature a mix of portrait views and close-ups of relevant body parts, to which spatters of blood and dripping ichor on each page add melodramatic visual motifs. This is an outstanding way for readers to meet scientists at work in both field and lab, as well as to learn that, for instance, fulmar chicks can project vomit up to 6 feet and, creepily, that a school of the Amazonian two-spot astyanax will attack and eject one of its own to distract an approaching predator.

Thrilling reading for budding biologists. (source notes, multimedia resource lists) (Nonfiction. 9-11)