In the second story about these siblings, a tornado warning sends Ike, his parents, and younger sister Mem to the basement. When the all clear is given and everyone goes to bed, Ike is worried that with the TV turned off, they won’t know if a tornado is approaching. So he puts the portable TV in bed with him and stays up all night watching movies to be on the alert. The next two nights of tornado watches result in Ike falling asleep at school, sleeping through dinner, and his mother taking him to the doctor. On the fourth night, Ike conks out during his watch and, in fact, a tornado does hit, blowing the roof off his best friend’s house next door. He wakes up in the basement, where his parents, obviously on the alert, have taken the family again. An image of the moon as an eye, watching and waiting for Ike to go to sleep adds a nice child-like touch, but it’s hard to guess exactly what is intended here. Reassurance? Well, maybe, but a tornado isn’t quite so quiet an experience as this. Unfortunately, the pen-and-ink drawings from Alter, who also illustrated the first in the series (The Bird Shadow, 2001), are uninspired and add nothing to the story. The short episode format (no chapter headings) will appeal to the first-chapter set and the third in the series is scheduled for 2003. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2002
ISBN: 0-8234-1672-0
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2002
An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe.
An introduction to gravity.
The book opens with the most iconic demonstration of gravity, an apple falling. Throughout, Herz tackles both huge concepts—how gravity compresses atoms to form stars and how black holes pull all kinds of matter toward them—and more concrete ones: how gravity allows you to jump up and then come back down to the ground. Gravity narrates in spare yet lyrical verse, explaining how it creates planets and compresses atoms and comparing itself to a hug. “My embrace is tight enough that you don’t float like a balloon, but loose enough that you can run and leap and play.” Gravity personifies itself at times: “I am stubborn—the bigger things are, the harder I pull.” Beautiful illustrations depict swirling planets and black holes alongside racially diverse children playing, running, and jumping, all thanks to gravity. Thorough backmatter discusses how Sir Isaac Newton discovered gravity and explains Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. While at times Herz’s explanations may be a bit too technical for some readers, burgeoning scientists will be drawn in.
An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe. (Informational picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: April 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668936849
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tilbury House
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2024
Miranda’s book counts the monsters gathering at a birthday party, while a simple rhyming text keeps the tally and surveys the action: “Seven starved monsters are licking the dishes./Eight blow out candles and make birthday wishes.” The counting proceeds to ten, then by tens to fifty, then gradually returns to one, which makes the monster’s mother, a purple pin-headed octopus, very happy. The book is surprisingly effective due to Powell’s artwork; the color has texture and density, as if it were poured onto the page, but the real attention-getter is the singularity of every monster attendee. They are highly individual and, therefore, eminently countable. As the numbers start crawling upward, it is both fun and a challenge to try to recognize monsters who have appeared in previous pages, or to attempt to stay focused when counting the swirling or bunched creatures. The story has glints of humor, and in combination with the illustrations is a grand addition to the counting shelf. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201835-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
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