by Heather Alexander ; illustrated by Andrés Lozano ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 22, 2018
Broad of scope and easy on the eyes—but marred by too many errors and oversimplifications.
From the Big Bang to space toilets, an outer-space Q-and-A with most of the answers hidden beneath multitudinous flaps.
Along with arrays of simply drawn but recognizable spacecraft, scientific gear, and heavenly bodies on, between, and under the large and small flaps on every stiff page, Lozano’s bright cartoon illustrations feature a human cast that is thoroughly diverse in age, gender, and skin color. The narrative content is, unfortunately, less appealing. Alexander asks and answers queries on a great range of subjects—usually accurately and sometimes cleverly (readers wanting to keep the planets in order either by size or by distance from the sun will find mnemonic prompts for both). However, the only telescopes she mentions are optical ones and the only spacecraft or rockets NASA-built, and she implies that Venus is the only planet visible to the naked eye. Moreover, a claim that “Most [meteorites] land in the desert or Antarctica” is nonsensical (perhaps she means that most are found in those locales), and a reference to “Kupier [sic] Belt Objects” isn’t the only sign of sloppy copy editing.
Broad of scope and easy on the eyes—but marred by too many errors and oversimplifications. (Informational novelty. 6-9)Pub Date: March 22, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-78603-055-9
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Wide Eyed Editions
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2018
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by Lily Williams ; illustrated by Lily Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 28, 2018
A solid addition to the climate-change canon for those interested in saving a fragile world.
Dire consequences attend the unchecked melting of Arctic sea ice.
The more the ice melts, the more the Arctic climate changes. The more that air and ground temperatures rise, the more the frozen ecosystem’s inhabitants, including plants and insects, suffer from dwindling habitats; threats to food sources; and imbalances in feeding, breeding, and migration patterns. Solid information is packed into this brief work that lucidly raises the alarm for young readers, with each spread capturing the thrilling, chilling north in rich, dramatic blue swathes of seawater set off by icy glaciers and snowdrifts. Child-friendly, occasionally cluttered paintings, some with labels, highlight polar bears and their Arctic neighbors; a spread of vignettes illustrates how changes to plant life affect wildlife. One labeled spread explains all: As seawater warms, it absorbs sunlight, thus heating more water and melting more ice. One poignant spread depicts a bewildered polar bear mom, eyeing readers and flanked by her twin cubs, drifting on a shrinking ice floe. Two human children, one brown-skinned and one pale, occasionally appear in the illustrations as well. The book ends on a hopeful note, reassuring youngsters that “we still have time to save polar bears and slow the loss of Arctic ice.” A note in the backmatter offers conservation tips.
A solid addition to the climate-change canon for those interested in saving a fragile world. (author’s note, bibliography, additional sources) (Informational picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-14319-8
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2018
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by Yuval Zommer ; illustrated by Yuval Zommer ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 5, 2018
A refreshing dive past some of our world’s marine wonders.
Denizens of the deep crowd oversized pages in this populous gallery of ocean life.
The finny and tentacled sea creatures drifting or arrowing through Zommer’s teeming watercolor seascapes are generally recognizable, and they are livened rather than distorted by the artist’s tendency to place human eyes on the same side of many faces, Picasso-like. Headers such as “Ink-teresting” or “In for the krill” likewise add a playful tone to the pithy comments on anatomical features or behavioral quirks that accompany the figures (which include, though rarely, a white human diver). The topical spreads begin with an overview of ocean families (“Some are hairy, some have scales, some have fins and some are boneless and brainless!”), go on to introduce select animals in no particular order from sea horses and dragonets to penguins and pufferfish, then close with cautionary remarks on chemical pollution and floating plastic. The author invites readers as they go to find both answers to such questions as “Why does a crab run sideways?” and also a small sardine hidden in some, but not all, of the pictures. For the latter he provides a visual key at the end, followed by a basic glossary.
A refreshing dive past some of our world’s marine wonders. (index) (Informational picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: June 5, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-500-65119-3
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2018
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