A lively and original approach to a complex subject.
A boy who looks like he’s visiting from a digital cartoon film provides step-by-step instructions so his friends can build a planet just like the one we inhabit.
From a bang-up beginning to finishing touches (including human beings) and some suggestions for planet care, this lighthearted approach to the origins of the universe, the Earth and its inhabitants covers 13.7 billion years of development in 64 pages of short, snappy prose. Lively design, liberal use of comic-style illustrations, text presented in small plates (usually a single paragraph with a heading) and frequent time checks make this information easily digestible. Each step covers four to six pages. The author also introduces big numbers, small particles, and long time and distance scales. He covers star life and planet formation, even including the most common theory about the origin of our moon. Timelines at the beginning and near the end will help readers get a sense of the whole. Distilling this much science is a challenge, and space permits the exploration of only a few alternate theories. There are points on which specialists may disagree, occasional oversimplifications and omissions, and facts overtaken by new discoveries. (The book was first published in Australia in 2012.) But overall, the content is sound and likely to provide a solid structure for further learning.
A lively and original approach to a complex subject. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 9-12)Pub Date: March 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-894786-88-1
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2014
An intriguing collection of invention, engineering and scientific advances and potential developments for readers who like...
From Velcro fastenings to man-made marshes for wastewater processing, many modern innovations have sprung from observation and imitation of the natural world.
In topically organized double-page spreads, Lee describes shapes and structures, materials and designs, as well as systems for exploration, communication, rescue and delivery. Each spread offers a general introduction to its subject, set on a painted background, usually a natural scene. The canvas base of these acrylic paintings provides an interesting texture. Three or four specific examples, each with illustrative vignettes, follow or sometimes precede the general explanation. These topics range widely and include medical marvels, new power sources, biological computers and robots. Although this has the shape and look of a picture book, the relatively extensive text is clearly aimed at upper-elementary-school readers. It offers fewer specific examples than Phil Gates’ Nature Got There First (2010), but its explanations are clearer and it includes a strong ecological message: The most important natural model is the sustainable ecosystem. Through biomimicry, humans can learn to live in balance on the Earth as well. The author provides no sources or suggestions for further exploration, though her short descriptions are sure to lead readers to want to know more.
An intriguing collection of invention, engineering and scientific advances and potential developments for readers who like to know a little bit about a lot of things. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-55453-467-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: July 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2011
McMahon’s enthusiasm for his topic may get readers off the ground—but not into orbit. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 10-12)
A buoyant but slapped-together look at current and future efforts to get more people into space.
This brief survey includes a quick history of space flight, mentions of and quotes from several astronauts or actual space tourists and enticing glimpses of space hotels, a space elevator and possible tourist destinations on other planets. Unfortunately, this enticing subject is bogged down by incomplete explanations and occasionally misleading claims. Readers will be unenlightened by the author’s non-explanation of zero gravity and perhaps actively confused by the introduction of the term "microgravity." Further, one section implies that Bigelow Aerospace is simply in the space-hotel business (a claim denied on the company’s site) rather than the more complex commercial venture it is. Mora’s bland painted representations of the space shuttle, SpaceShipOne and other craft don’t measure up to photos and commercially produced graphic images easily found elsewhere. Five low-tech projects seek to complement the material, ranging from a doable cardboard centrifuge to a challenging multi-stage balloon rocket and a “space vacation plane” so complex that all the instructions had to be moved to an online site.
McMahon’s enthusiasm for his topic may get readers off the ground—but not into orbit. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 10-12)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-55453-368-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 6, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2011
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