A veteran stargazer (See the Stars: Your First Guide to the Night Sky, 2000, etc.) pairs a meaty disquisition on stellar types and life cycles to page-filling photos and artistic visions of stars and nebulae. Using the H-R (Hertzsprung-Russell) Diagram as his framework, he devotes spreads to heavenly bodies from main-sequence stars to Cepheid variables, neutron stars and black holes—exploring along the way in some detail exactly how scientists determine or deduce stellar luminosity, mass and chemical composition. He closes with a look at extrasolar planets, current theories about the origin of natural elements and the search for extraterrestrial life. Even readers who find the densely packed text hard going will pore over the pictures: Printed in sharp detail and bright, enhanced colors on glossy-coated paper, Orion, the Veil Nebula, the Crab Nebula and their celestial companions make serious eye candy. Though the lack of a resource list limits its research value, students of the skies will find this a (what else?) stellar picture of what we know or guess about those distant lights. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-59078-582-9
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Miranda’s book counts the monsters gathering at a birthday party, while a simple rhyming text keeps the tally and surveys the action: “Seven starved monsters are licking the dishes./Eight blow out candles and make birthday wishes.” The counting proceeds to ten, then by tens to fifty, then gradually returns to one, which makes the monster’s mother, a purple pin-headed octopus, very happy. The book is surprisingly effective due to Powell’s artwork; the color has texture and density, as if it were poured onto the page, but the real attention-getter is the singularity of every monster attendee. They are highly individual and, therefore, eminently countable. As the numbers start crawling upward, it is both fun and a challenge to try to recognize monsters who have appeared in previous pages, or to attempt to stay focused when counting the swirling or bunched creatures. The story has glints of humor, and in combination with the illustrations is a grand addition to the counting shelf. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201835-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
The Pumpkin Book (32 pp.; $16.95; Sept. 15; 0-8234-1465-5): From seed to vine and blossom to table, Gibbons traces the growth cycle of everyone’s favorite autumn symbol—the pumpkin. Meticulous drawings detail the transformation of tiny seeds to the colorful gourds that appear at roadside stands and stores in the fall. Directions for planting a pumpkin patch, carving a jack-o’-lantern, and drying the seeds give young gardeners the instructions they need to grow and enjoy their own golden globes. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1465-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
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