BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE HUMAN BODY!

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BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE HUMAN BODY!

Name: BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE HUMAN BODY!
Author: Kathleen V. Kudlinski
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3792-1

From the Boy, Were We Wrong series

by Kathleen V. Kudlinski ; illustrated by Debbie Tilley ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 20, 2015

Accurate, informative, and surprisingly enjoyable.

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A picture-book history of human anatomy and physiology for a young age group—can anyone breathe life into this challenging concept?

Colorful cartoonlike illustrations combine with brief text to provide a history of misunderstandings of human anatomy and physiology that often served to misdirect medical care in the past. The refrain, “Boy, were they wrong!” concludes many spreads. Some of the themes explored: ancient Egyptians’ belief that the heart was the site of the personality; the commonly held misconception that many illnesses could be cured by bloodletting; acupuncture, which is later revealed as one of the “ancient ideas that work”; the idea that eyes produced light that captured images; and the belief that four types of humors filled the body and their imbalance was the source of illness. Each of these is described in a sentence or two and accompanied by a humorous, never-gory illustration, juxtaposed against a follow-on double-page spread that explains, very simply, the actual way the body works. The final few pages explore recent ideas and technologies, including information about DNA and a description of some unnamed imaging techniques. The fourth in the series, this clever entry is just as amusing and informative as the rest. A timeline that lists numerous highly significant medical advances, also—whimsically?—includes the 1921 invention of the Band-Aid.

Accurate, informative, and surprisingly enjoyable. (Informational picture book. 5-9)

Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-8037-3792-1

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Dial Books

Review Posted Online: July 14, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2015

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE WEATHER!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski ; illustrated by Sebastià Serra

- BOOK REVIEW
BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE SOLAR SYSTEM!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski & illustrated by John Rocco

- BOOK REVIEW
BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT DINOSAURS!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski & illustrated by S.D. Schindler

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ROBOBABY

by David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2020

A retro-futuristic romp, literally and figuratively screwy.

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Robo-parents Diode and Lugnut present daughter Cathode with a new little brother—who requires, unfortunately, some assembly.

Arriving in pieces from some mechanistic version of Ikea, little Flange turns out to be a cute but complicated tyke who immediately falls apart…and then rockets uncontrollably about the room after an overconfident uncle tinkers with his basic design. As a squad of helpline techies and bevies of neighbors bearing sludge cake and like treats roll in, the cluttered and increasingly crowded scene deteriorates into madcap chaos—until at last Cath, with help from Roomba-like robodog Sprocket, stages an intervention by whisking the hapless new arrival off to a backyard workshop for a proper assembly and software update. “You’re such a good big sister!” warbles her frazzled mom. Wiesner’s robots display his characteristic clean lines and even hues but endearingly look like vaguely anthropomorphic piles of random jet-engine parts and old vacuum cleaners loosely connected by joints of armored cable. They roll hither and thither through neatly squared-off panels and pages in infectiously comical dismay. Even the end’s domestic tranquility lasts only until Cathode spots the little box buried in the bigger one’s packing material: “TWINS!” (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-22-inch double-page spreads viewed at 52% of actual size.)

A retro-futuristic romp, literally and figuratively screwy. (Picture book. 5-7)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020

ISBN: 978-0-544-98731-9

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Clarion Books

Review Posted Online: June 2, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2020

Categories:

CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
I GOT IT!
by David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner

- BOOK REVIEW
FISH GIRL
by Donna Jo Napoli & David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner

- BOOK REVIEW
MR. WUFFLES!
by David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner

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MELIA AND JO

by Billy Aronson ; illustrated by Jennifer Oxley ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 21, 2018

A delightful story of a cross-racial friendship between two kids who realize how much they need each other and the passions...

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STEM becomes STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) as Melia, an inventor, and Jo, a dancer, discover that they’re a dynamic team.

Melia loves to invent things and tinker all day long in her backyard. Then Jo moves in next door and dances her way into Melia’s inventing space. With total disregard for the sanctity of Melia’s creations, Jo flips Melia’s cereal-bowl radio onto her head to wear it as a hat, sticks a rope of black licorice into the neck of an unfinished robot, and chucks a paper airplane—that Melia is still designing—into the air. Although she’s miffed at Jo’s invasion of her space, Melia realizes that Jo has inadvertently solved some puzzling conundrums. When Melia shows Jo what a difference she has made, Jo refuses to partner with Melia…until one of Melia’s inventions saves her. Their contrasting personalities are effectively delineated in the retro-styled illustrations: Brown-skinned Jo wears a pinky-purple tutu, a pearl necklace, and feathers in her hair; blonde-haired, peachy-skinned Melia wears shorts and an orange cape and boots. The backmatter provides instructions for how to make Melia’s paper airplane and explains the benefits of turning STEM into STEAM.

A delightful story of a cross-racial friendship between two kids who realize how much they need each other and the passions that each brings to the friendship. (Picture book. 5-8)