Quick but wide-angled overviews.
Highlights in the long history of plants, from primeval algae to genetically modified rice.
Ada Osprey, intrepid librarian of the Eagle-Eyed Explorer Club, invites readers to tag along as she travels back in time, busily taking notes. Sounding rather a lot like lectures, these cover the distinctive characteristics of plants, how cyanobacteria kicked off plant evolution by embedding themselves in other single-celled organisms, the development in plants of different strategies for survival and reproduction, the invention of agriculture, and finally our use and misuse of fossil fuels and other plant-based products. Along the way six “plant Explorers” such as geneticist Gregor Mendel and botanical illustrator Marianne North earn short profiles. Following a pair of review quizzes (answers, refreshingly, not provided in a separate key) she presents the survey’s special feature—a one-sided, 6-foot-long, accordion-folded timeline studded with painted depictions of around 100 identified specimens, select landmark events such as the K-T extinction and the appearance of an early farmer (wielding, anachronistically, a metal sickle) and explanatory captions. Ada has brown skin and long, dark hair. A similar timeline graces the co-published Mammals!, with a gallery of hominins (all male, brown-skinned, and, with the exception of a downright dapper Homo habilis, unkempt) marching amid a throng of smiling, now-extinct prehistoric contemporary creatures.
Quick but wide-angled overviews. (index, glossary) (Novelty nonfiction. 8-11)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-995-5770-8-4
Page Count: 38
Publisher: What on Earth Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
A classic story of outsiders making friends—with a little something more.
After moving to a new city, a girl attends a wilderness camp to help her make new friends.
When astronomy-obsessed 9-year-old Vega’s dad Wes gets a new job, the family moves from Portland to Seattle. Vega is not happy about this change and doesn’t want to leave her best friend behind, worrying they will grow apart. Vega’s dad Javi thinks making new friends will help her adjust, so he signs her up for Camp Very Best Friend, which is designed to help introverted local children build new friendships. Vega is not exactly eager to go but makes a deal with Wes, agreeing to try out camp as long as he tries to make a new friend too. It quickly becomes clear that this is no ordinary outdoor adventure, and Vega and her fellow campers try to figure out what is really going on. The story smoothly incorporates STEM facts with insets on the page to define and highlight terms or tools. An unexpected twist toward the end of this fast-paced adventure that reveals the truth behind the camp will surprise readers. The clean, bright artwork is enhanced by panels of varying shapes and clear, easy-to-follow speech bubbles. Race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation are not explicitly addressed; characters’ names and physical appearances indicate a broadly diverse cast starting with brown-skinned Vega and her two dads.
A classic story of outsiders making friends—with a little something more. (Graphic fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: June 29, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-5566-5
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 29, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2021
A picture book combines the exuberance of children and the drama found in nature for a sly lesson on power-sharing. Henderson (Newborn, 1999, etc.) lands on the wide reaches of a windy beach where young Jim expansively flings wide his arms and claims “All this is mine!” So it seems until the wind blows in a gale so violent that it smashes objects and tears “through the dreams of people sleeping.” An eerie series of black-and-white paintings shows the white-capped waves breaking ever higher and crashing inland; these are so frightening that Jim cries out to his mother, “The sea! It’s coming!” Happily enough, Jim and his mother are able to run up the hill to a grandmother’s house where they weather the storm safely. The next time Jim speaks to the wind, on a much quieter beach, he whispers, “All this is yours.” Large type, appealing pastel illustrations, and a dose of proper perspective on humankind’s power over nature make this book a fine choice for story hours as well as nature collections. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7636-0904-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1999
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
