An enthralling, contemporary tale of man versus machine.
An artificial intelligence program beats a champion in this nonfiction illustrated children’s book.
In March 2016 in Seoul, Lee Sedol of South Korea competed with AlphaGo, an AI program, in Go, a board game where players capture patterns on a grid using stones. Sedol, the “Go world champion,” was confident he would win, and the British DeepMind team, the creators of AlphaGo, wondered if the AI was ready to compete against such an adept human player. A diverse group of reporters and spectators packed the event. Everyone was shocked when AlphaGo (a DeepMind member moved the stones on the AI’s behalf) won the first two rounds. Sedol was stunned. Following AlphaGo’s third win, some people worried that AI “would soon be smarter than humans.” But Sedol “went big, trying to take a large territory, in an all-or-nothing play,” and beat the AI in the fourth round. Still, AlphaGo triumphed in the final round, proving that AI “could learn tasks and, at times, do them better than humans.” Although the surprising result left many people wary about the power of AI systems, “everything AlphaGo did was because humans had created and programmed it. AlphaGo beat Lee Sedol, but it also helped him to think in new, creative ways, to see the world differently.” The engaging story offers useful information and insights about technological advancements. Pattison emphasizes how computers and AI impact the world. The book also includes kid-friendly explanations of AI, showing how AlphaGo was trained to recognize patterns, and bios of Sedol and DeepMind. The work will especially be enjoyed by young readers interested in technology, programming, or gaming. Willis’ emotive illustrations provide charming elements like collaged details and patterned, textured backgrounds. Many show scenes of the intense competition, sometimes including speech bubbles.
An enthralling, contemporary tale of man versus machine.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 17
Publisher: Mims House
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This delightful debut welcomes readers in like a house filled with love.
A 13-year-old biracial girl longs to build the house of her dreams.
For Lou Bulosan-Nelson, normal is her “gigantic extended family squished into Lola’s for every holiday imaginable.” She shares a bedroom with her Filipina mother, Minda—a former interior-design major and current nurse-to-be—in Lola Celina’s San Francisco home. From her deceased white father, Michael, Lou inherited “not-so-Filipino features,” his love for architecture, and some land. Lou’s quietude implies her keen eye for details, but her passion for creating with her hands resonates loudly. Pining for something to claim as her own, she plans to construct a house from the ground up. When her mom considers moving out of state for a potential job and Lou’s land is at risk of being auctioned off, Lou stays resilient, gathering support from both friends and family to make her dream a reality. Respicio authentically depicts the richness of Philippine culture, incorporating Filipino language, insights into Lou’s family history, and well-crafted descriptions of customs, such as the birdlike Tinikling dance and eating kamayan style (with one’s hands), throughout. Lou’s story gives voice to Filipino youth, addressing cultural differences, the importance of bayanihan (community), and the true meaning of home.
This delightful debut welcomes readers in like a house filled with love. (Fiction. 8-13)Pub Date: June 12, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5247-1794-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Wendy Lamb/Random
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
An absorbing fantasy centered on a resilient female protagonist facing growth, change, and self-empowerment.
In Florence’s middle-grade fantasy novel, a young girl’s heart is tested in the face of an evil, spreading Darkness.
Eleven-year-old Lydia, “freckle-cheeked and round-eyed, with hair the color of pine bark and fair skin,” is struggling with the knowledge that she has reached the age to apprentice as an herbalist. Lydia is reluctant to leave her beloved, magical Mulberry Glen and her cozy Housetree in the woods—she’ll miss Garder, the Glen’s respected philosopher; her fairy guardian Pit; her human friend Livy; and even the mischievous part-elf, part-imp, part-human twins Zale and Zamilla. But the twins go missing after hearing of a soul-sapping Darkness that has swallowed a forest and is creeping into minds and engulfing entire towns. They have secretly left to find a rare fruit that, it is said, will stop the Darkness if thrown into the heart of the mountain that rises out of the lethal forest. Lydia follows, determined to find the twins before they, too, fall victim to the Darkness. During her journey, accompanied by new friends, she gradually realizes that she herself has a dangerous role to play in the quest to stop the Darkness. In this well-crafted fantasy, Florence skillfully equates the physical manifestation of Darkness with the feelings of insecurity and powerlessness that Lydia first struggles with when thinking of leaving the Glen. Such negative thoughts grow more intrusive the closer she and her friends come to the Darkness—and to Lydia’s ultimate, powerfully rendered test of character, which leads to a satisfyingly realistic, not quite happily-ever-after ending. Highlights include a delightfully haunting, reality-shifting library and a deft sprinkling of Latin throughout the text; Pit’s pet name for Lydia is mea flosculus (“my little flower”). Fine-lined ink drawings introducing each chapter add a pleasing visual element to this well-grounded fairy tale.
An absorbing fantasy centered on a resilient female protagonist facing growth, change, and self-empowerment.Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781956393095
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Waxwing Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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