A lyrical introduction to STEM for budding scientists, animal lovers, and artists everywhere
Muted, mixed-media illustrations pair nicely with spare, poetic text that depicts the seasons in a forest.
An owl sits in a hole in a tree, “keeping an eye on things” as each new season begins and ends. Squirrels first seen curled up in a tree soon seek food as snowflakes drift down; birds and frogs liven up the pond in spring but quiet down in summer heat; the squirrels scurry about once again in fall as the frogs burrow their way into the mud below the pond. This book doesn’t shy away from presenting natural dangers—when the owl goes hunting, squirrels must beware. And summer lightning hits the owl’s tree—will it escape in time? Winter comes again, and so does a new perspective: Readers peek out through a hole in the tree from deep inside the squirrels’ den to see the owl flying past. This first introduction to the science of seasons and animal behavior features painterly, detailed illustrations that enchant and instruct, illuminating and extending the lively, approachable, often onomatopoeic text. Frontmatter explains why we have seasons and certain weather patterns such as thunderstorms; complementary backmatter offers both topical discussion questions and a subject index, which further lend this book to STEM-related storytimes and activities.
A lyrical introduction to STEM for budding scientists, animal lovers, and artists everywhere . (Informational picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9600-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
So rocket science can be fun.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
If they haven’t already thought about their futures (and they probably haven’t), toddlers and preschoolers might start planning after perusing this cheerful first guide to scientific careers. Plump-cheeked, wide-eyed tykes with various skin and hair colors introduce different professions, including zoologist, meteorologist, aerospace engineer, and environmental scientist, depicted with cues to tip readers off to what the jobs entail. The simple text presents the sometimes-long, tongue-twisting career names while helpfully defining them in comprehensible terms. For example, an environmental scientist “helps take care of our world,” and a zoologist is defined as someone who “studies how animals behave.” Scientists in general are identified as those who “study, learn, and solve problems.” Such basic language not only benefits youngsters, but also offers adults sharing the book easy vocabulary with which to expand on conversations with kids about the professions. The title’s ebullient appearance is helped along by the typography: The jobs’ names are set in all caps, printed in color and in a larger font than the surrounding text, and emphasized with exclamation points. Additionally, the buoyant watercolors feature clues to what scientists in these fields work with, such as celestial bodies for astronomers. The youngest listeners won’t necessarily get all of this, but the book works as a rudimentary introduction to STEM topics and a shoutout to scientific endeavors.
So rocket science can be fun. (Informational picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-62354-149-1
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Only gnashnabs would cavil at this eximious display of lexicographical largesse.
More labial lollipops for logomanes and sesquipedalian proto-savants.
The creators of Big Words for Little Geniuses (2017) and Cuddly Critters for Little Geniuses (2018) follow up with another ABC of extravagant expressions. It begins with “ailurophile” (“How furry sweet!” Puns, yet), ends with “zoanthropy,” and in between highlights “bioluminescent,” growls at a grouchy “gnashnab,” and collects a “knickknackatory” of like locutions. A list of 14 additional words is appended in a second, partial alphabet. Each entry comes with a phonetic version, a one- or two-sentence verbal definition, and, from Pan, a visual one with a big letter and very simple, broadly brushed figures. Lending an ear to aural pleasures, the authors borrow from German to include “fünfundfünfzig” in the main list and add a separate list of a dozen more words at the end likewise deemed sheer fun to say. Will any of these rare, generally polysyllabic leviathans find their way into idiolects or casual conversations? Unlikely, alas—but sounding them out and realizing that even the silliest have at least putative meanings sheds liminal light on language’s glittering word hoards.
Only gnashnabs would cavil at this eximious display of lexicographical largesse. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-316-53445-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Jimmy Patterson/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
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