More style than substance.
Learn (some of) the tools of (some of) the trade(s).
Bold posterlike illustrations work in tandem across each oversized double-page spread to define a selection of tools used by a variety of professions and hobbies, both real and fantastical. The verso page highlights from three to eight items commonly used by each profession while the recto page presents a practitioner accoutered with the depicted items and accessories. The people represent a range of skin tones, ages, and sizes, and the jobs and hobbies are equally diverse, ranging from astronaut to superhero. The professions are not arranged in any apparent order, which makes each page turn a bit of a surprise. Equally surprising are the tools selected for each profession: The skater’s (actually a skateboarder, a light-skinned woman) do not include a helmet but do include other safety gear while the fisherman (a White, bearded old salt) is depicted with no actual tools at all. It certainly is visually interesting, but it’s disappointingly reliant on stereotype and will probably do little to encourage creative thought. Although there is gender and racial diversity on display, Davey disrupts too few preconceived roles: The pilot looks like a White man, as do the scientist and the conductor; the boxer is a hulking Black man. The only Black character approaching a STEM trade is the “nerd” hunched over a laptop and carrying a bag of comic books.
More style than substance. (Informational picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: Nov. 24, 2020
ISBN: 978-3-89955-149-5
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Little Gestalten
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Erupt into applause for this picture book of the first magma-tude.
A deceptively simple, visually appealing, comprehensive explanation of volcanoes.
Gibbons packs an impressive number of facts into this browsable nonfiction picture book. The text begins with the awe of a volcanic eruption: “The ground begins to rumble…ash, hot lava and rock, and gases shoot up into the air.” Diagrams of the Earth’s structural layers—inner and outer core, mantle, and crust—undergird a discussion about why volcanoes occur. Simple maps of the Earth’s seven major tectonic plates show where volcanoes are likeliest to develop. Other spreads with bright, clearly labeled illustrations cover intriguing subtopics: four types of volcanoes and how they erupt; underwater volcanoes; well-known volcanoes and historic volcanic eruptions around the world; how to be safe in the vicinity of a volcano; and the work of scientists studying volcanoes and helping to predict eruptions. A page of eight facts about volcanoes wraps things up. The straightforward, concise prose will be easy for young readers to follow. As always, Gibbons manages to present a great deal of information in a compact form.
Erupt into applause for this picture book of the first magma-tude. (Nonfiction picture book. 4-9)Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4569-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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