Challenging but important reading for the intended audience.
The stories of seven Western Hemisphere species—headed toward extinction for different reasons and saved in different ways—introduce and explain issues involved in the preservation of endangered animals.
After a short introduction to the concept of extinction and the importance of the Endangered Species Act, Castaldo describes her visits to restoration centers for whooping cranes in Wisconsin; gray wolves, bald eagles, and American bison in New York; giant Galápagos tortoises in Ecuador; condors in California; and alligators in Florida. Her admiration and appreciation for these wild creatures and their human helpers permeate the gracefully written text. Chapter by chapter she explains why each species was in trouble, the often controversial restoration methods, and the results. The well-organized and convincingly presented narrative is supplemented with sidebars and enlivened with plentiful photographs, most taken by the author herself. She uses her examples as springboards to introduce and explain larger questions as well as to introduce important concepts such as the need for apex predators. She uses fresh, less-familiar quotations (Herman Melville on the giant tortoise!) and cites scientists both male and female, naturalists, and volunteers, including young people. A “Call to Action” offers solid, meaningful suggestions for young readers, and she concludes with 18 pages of backmatter including many, many learning opportunities: things to watch and read, organizations to investigate, websites and parks to explore.
Challenging but important reading for the intended audience. (notes, bibliography, glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: April 24, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-544-95343-7
Page Count: 176
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hot on the heels of the well-received Leonardo da Vinci (2005) comes another agreeably chatty entry in the Giants of Science series. Here the pioneering physicist is revealed as undeniably brilliant, but also cantankerous, mean-spirited, paranoid and possibly depressive. Newton’s youth and annus mirabilis receive respectful treatment, the solitude enforced by family estrangement and then the plague seen as critical to the development of his thoughtful, methodical approach. His subsequent squabbles with the rest of the scientific community—he refrained from publishing one treatise until his rival was dead—further support the image of Newton as a scientific lone wolf. Krull’s colloquial treatment sketches Newton’s advances in clearly understandable terms without bogging the text down with detailed explanations. A final chapter on “His Impact” places him squarely in the pantheon of great thinkers, arguing that both his insistence on the scientific method and his theories of physics have informed all subsequent scientific thought. A bibliography, web site and index round out the volume; the lack of detail on the use of sources is regrettable in an otherwise solid offering for middle-grade students. (Biography. 10-14)
Pub Date: April 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-670-05921-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2006
This glossy, colorful title in the “I Want To Be” series has visual appeal but poor organization and a fuzzy focus, which limits its usefulness. Each double-paged layout introduces a new topic with six to eight full-color photographs and a single column of text. Topics include types of environmentalists, eco-issues, waste renewal, education, High School of Environmental Studies, environmental vocabulary, history of environmentalism, famous environmentalists, and the return of the eagle. Often the photographs have little to do with the text or are marginal to the topic. For example, a typical layout called “Some Alternative Solutions” has five snapshots superimposed on a double-page photograph of a California wind farm. The text discusses ways to develop alternative forms of energy and “encourage environmentally friendly lifestyles.” Photos include “a healer who treats a patient with alternative therapy using sound and massage,” and “the Castle,” a house built of “used tires and aluminum cans.” Elsewhere, “Did You Know . . . ” shows a dramatic photo of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, but the text provides odd facts such as “ . . . that in Saudi Arabia there are solar-powered pay phones in the desert?” Some sections seem stuck in, a two-page piece on the effects of “El Niño” or 50 postage-stamp–sized photos of endangered species. The author concludes with places to write for more information and a list of photo credits. Pretty, but little here to warrant purchase. (Nonfiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-15-201862-X
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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