A bubbly blast of science and common sense, timely as well as timeless.
A recipe for health-conscious behavior, with some currently applicable additions.
The author and illustrator of How Do Molecules Stay Together? (2019) range beyond the title’s implied focus to deliver standard-issue remarks on the benefits of trying for a better balance of food groups while getting plenty of sleep and exercise. Especially timely material, however, includes urging readers to “do a dab” for coughs and sneezes, practice “social distancing,” and especially to wash hands both often and long enough for a double chorus of “Happy Birthday.” Along with explaining how soap’s hydrophilic and hydrophobic ingredients help wash off what she redundantly refers to as “germs and bacteria” (viruses get separate mention), Hayes describes the differences between vaccines and what she calls “symptoms medications” and “Treatment medications.” Also, though the current pandemic isn’t mentioned, some of the leering microbes in the cartoon-style illustrations at least resemble coronaviruses. Occasional slides into drollery, notably a suggestion that sleep builds brain power because “little elf librarians” sneak into bedrooms at night to share books (“unfortunately, that has never been proven”), lighten the message, as do a racially diverse array of human figures, nearly all of which are children or doctors, who dance energetically throughout, gesticulating broadly and repeatedly demonstrating “doing the dab” for those who aren’t in the know. A simple, soapy experiment and a smoothie recipe add hands-on elements. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 65% of actual size.)
A bubbly blast of science and common sense, timely as well as timeless. (glossary) (Informational picture book. 8-11)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4867-2073-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flowerpot Press
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A well-intentioned description of life before birth. The illustrations make use of photographs (including ultrasound) and artist’s drawings, often in the same image, and these are well used to clarify the text. How babies grow and develop inside the womb is both described and illustrated, and while the tone is one of forced cheer, the information is sound. Also offered are quite silly exercises for children to experience what life in the womb might be like, such as listening to a dishwasher to experience the sounds a baby hears inside its mother’s body, or being held under a towel or blanket by an adult and wiggling about. The getting-together of sperm and egg is lightly passed over, as is the actual process of birth. But children may be mesmerized by the drawings of the growing child inside the mother, and what activities predate their birth dates. Not an essential purchase, but adequate as an addition to the collection. (Picture book/nonfiction. 4-8)
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2000
ISBN: 1-894379-01-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Firefly
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2000
Thousands of years ago, the Komodo dragon may have inspired dragon legends in China and beyond. In more recent times, researchers from all over the world have traveled to the Lesser Sunda Islands of Indonesia to study the Komodo dragon. This lively if somewhat haphazardly organized account focuses on the efforts of contemporary researchers, presents some of their cooler findings (female dragons can reproduce through parthenogenesis; their saliva is laced with deadly bacteria) and profiles a few captive specimens. Mostly color photographs from a variety of sources adorn almost every page, and captions add to the information. Learning about the Komodo dragon is not for the faint of heart, and the photos show the wild beasts in all their gory glory. The extensive backmatter includes brief facts about Indonesia, more information on the Komodo dragon life cycle and its use of smell and conservation information. A portion of the sales will be donated to the Komodo Survival Program. (bibliography, further reading, glossary, websites, index, author’s note) (Nonfiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59078-757-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: Sept. 15, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
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