A gem of a small book, thoughtfully made for small hands and, with its heavy paper and sewn binding, loving handling.
A compendium of things in the universe that grow—including the universe itself—presented in an illustrated informational picture book divided into chapters.
Vast processes (the growth of mountains through plate tectonics) are combined with specific examples (the echidna doesn’t develop its spines until it leaves its mother’s pouch) to successfully explore this book’s ambitious premise: all things in our universe “develop and grow with every passing day.” This is a big idea for young readers, and because the topic of the evolution of humans occupies only two of the book’s 64 pages, it also underscores the important concept that humans are only one small part of an expansive, growing, changing universe. The book is divided into three sections: "Plants and Trees," "The Animal Kingdom," and "The Universe." Walden selects her facts and examples not only to inform readers, but to stimulate in them a curiosity that may propel further exploration. Stadtlander’s numerous illustrations—accessibly simple but not amateurish—along with the book’s small, unusual trim size (7.5 inches long by 5.8 inches high), give the book almost the look and feel of a child’s journal, which makes the weighty topics approachable. The only drawback is the book’s ending (a spread on islands rather than a summation of what’s gone before), which feels inconclusive.
A gem of a small book, thoughtfully made for small hands and, with its heavy paper and sewn binding, loving handling. (Informational picture book. 6-12)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-944530-05-1
Page Count: 64
Publisher: 360 Degrees
Review Posted Online: Dec. 20, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2017
Readers new to Gooseberry Park will hope they don’t have to wait another 20 years for the next book
Twenty years after the publication of Gooseberry Park (1995), Rylant returns with a sequel.
In the previous outing, the residents of Gooseberry Park coped with an ice storm; now, a drought threatens Stumpy the squirrel and her family, along with all the other animals. This spurs house pets chocolate Lab Kona and hermit crab Gwendolyn to devise the titular master plan to help their friends through the ecological disaster. Herman the crow—so smart that the rest of the crows have given up the annual chess match because they got sick of losing to him—works out a flowchart that involves a cat, a possum, a raccoon, 200 owls, and 20 packs of chewing gum. Murray the bat’s motivational-speaker brother puts his well-developed jaw muscles to work on the gum; Kona’s chocolate-Lab sincerity wins the unprecedented cooperation of 200 owls. Rylant writes with her customary restrained humor, creating with apparently no effort a full cast of three-dimensional furred and feathered characters. The story comes with lessons ranging from the overuse of fossil fuels to the peculiar magic of friendship, all applied with a gentle hand and a spirit of generous trust in the abilities of her readers to understand them. Her frequent collaborator Howard supplies lumpily humorous grayscale illustrations that augment the character development and give readers’ eyes places to rest.
Readers new to Gooseberry Park will hope they don’t have to wait another 20 years for the next book . (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: April 21, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4814-0449-5
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2015
The story feels a bit contrived, but Ada will be a welcome addition to the small circle of science-loving girls in the...
Using science and technology, third-grader Ada Lace kicks off her new series by solving a mystery even with her leg in a cast.
Temporarily housebound after a badly executed bungee jump, Ada uses binoculars to document the ecosystem of her new neighborhood in San Francisco. She records her observations in a field journal, a project that intrigues new friend Nina, who lives nearby. When they see that Ms. Reed’s dog, Marguerite, is missing, they leap to the conclusion that it has been stolen. Nina does the legwork and Ada provides the technology for their search for the dognapper. Story-crafting takes a back seat to scene-setting in this series kickoff that introduces the major players. As part of the series formula, science topics and gadgetry are integrated into the stories and further explained in a “Behind the Science” afterword. This installment incorporates drones, a wireless camera, gecko gloves, and the Turing test as well as the concept of an ecosystem. There are no ethnic indicators in the text, but the illustrations reveal that Ada, her family, and bratty neighbor Milton are white; Nina appears to be Southeast Asian; and Mr. Peebles, an inventor who lives nearby, is black.
The story feels a bit contrived, but Ada will be a welcome addition to the small circle of science-loving girls in the chapter-book world. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 29, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-8599-9
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2017
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