Animal lovers will enjoy the facts in this whimsical tale about an inseparable duo.
A great white shark tries to find a new friend in this debut science-centered picture book.
Deep Blue, a Carcharodon carcharias, doesn’t understand why everyone swims away from her. Using a clamshell computer for research and armed with advice from her trusty sea star companion, Cushy, Deep Blue determines she’ll spend the day making a new friend. But the fur seals and smaller sharks flee before she can join their games. When Cushy advises her to approach her next potential friends slowly, two brave penguins stick around to get to know Deep Blue, giving the shark, the sea star, and their new pals a chance to share science facts about their lives in and near the water. As Cushy and Deep Blue depart, the two warmly acknowledge that they are best friends. Deep Blue’s efforts may remind readers of the overly enthusiastic protagonist of Peter Brown’s You Will Be My Friend! (2011), while Cushy’s regular interjections of scientific names for different species and the exchange of facts are reminiscent of The Magic School Bus TV series. Swain presents the entertaining and informative story primarily through dialogue (shown in Kadysha’s bright digital illustrations as word balloons with a different color for each speaker), inviting readers to become immersed in the conversations. While all the animals retain some realistic features, Deep Blue and Cushy are the most anthropomorphized, particularly the shark’s expressively curled nose and purple headband.
Animal lovers will enjoy the facts in this whimsical tale about an inseparable duo.Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-73-648022-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Letter Links Press
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Adventure, humor, and smart, likable characters make for a winning chapter book.
Ada Twist’s incessant stream of questions leads to answers that help solve a neighborhood crisis.
Ada conducts experiments at home to answer questions such as, why does Mom’s coffee smell stronger than Dad’s coffee? Each answer leads to another question, another hypothesis, and another experiment, which is how she goes from collecting data on backyard birds for a citizen-science project to helping Rosie Revere figure out how to get her uncle Ned down from the sky, where his helium-filled “perilous pants” are keeping him afloat. The Questioneers—Rosie the engineer, Iggy Peck the architect, and Ada the scientist—work together, asking questions like scientists. Armed with knowledge (of molecules and air pressure, force and temperature) but more importantly, with curiosity, Ada works out a solution. Ada is a recognizable, three-dimensional girl in this delightfully silly chapter book: tirelessly curious and determined yet easily excited and still learning to express herself. If science concepts aren’t completely clear in this romp, relationships and emotions certainly are. In playful full- and half-page illustrations that break up the text, Ada is black with Afro-textured hair; Rosie and Iggy are white. A closing section on citizen science may inspire readers to get involved in science too; on the other hand, the “Ode to a Gas!” may just puzzle them. Other backmatter topics include the importance of bird study and the threat palm-oil use poses to rainforests.
Adventure, humor, and smart, likable characters make for a winning chapter book. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: April 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3422-9
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Trisha is ready to start at a new school, where no one will know she has dyslexia. At first, she is heartbroken to be in Miss Peterson’s special-ed class, aka, “the junkyard.” But Miss Peterson treats the children as anything but junk, showing them that everyone has a unique talent. Polacco’s trademark style is fully present here; her sensitively drawn alter ego shines with depth of feeling. When bullying occurs, Miss Peterson proves her students are worthwhile by planning a junkyard field trip, where they find valuable objects to be used in exciting ways. Trisha’s group repairs a plane, and the class buys an engine for it. Then a beloved class member dies, and the children must find a way to honor him. While the plot meanders somewhat, the characters are appealing, believable and provide a fine portrayal of a truly special class. Children will be drawn in by the story’s warmth and gentle humor and will leave with a spark of inspiration, an appreciation of individual differences and a firm anti-bullying message, all underscored by the author’s note that concludes the book. (Picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: July 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-399-25078-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2010
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