Though sketchy and dry, this may be of supplemental use in a classroom unit.
A primer on how select natural resources are classified.
In terse, impersonal prose paired to generic photos, “resources”—including fish, deer, farm animals, and trees along with the solar, water, geothermal, and wind quartet and fossil fuels—are first distinguished as renewable or not by the arbitrary criterion of whether they can replace themselves within a human lifetime. The anonymous author or authors go on to consider the advantages and disadvantages of each type but often not in depth. The discussion of agricultural products leaves out mention of GMOs, for instance; the point that not all plastics are recyclable goes unmade; and the tally of hazards related to coal mining misses air and ground pollution. The scope is catch as catch can too, as neither biomass nor atomic power make the cut as energy sources. The cogent if narrow-minded notion that through mismanagement or habitat destruction renewable “resources” (specifically fish, trees, and fresh water) can become at least locally nonrenewable does get a glance, and so does the elemental message that even renewable resources require conservation. Also, though the closing bibliography is directed at middle schoolers and up, the endmatter includes quizzes and discussion topics for younger students. Most of the humans caught in the photographs present White. Companion title Natural or Man-made? is likewise haphazard. Both titles release with simultaneous Spanish editions.
Though sketchy and dry, this may be of supplemental use in a classroom unit. (Nonfiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-64351-980-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Arbordale Publishing
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A lighthearted first look at an increasingly useful skill.
Grown-ups may not be the only audience for this simple explanation of how algorithms work.
Taking a confused-looking hipster parent firmly in hand, a child first points to all the computers around the house (“Pro Tip: When dealing with grown-ups, don’t jump into the complicated stuff too fast. Start with something they already know”). Next, the child leads the adult outside to make and follow step-by-step directions for getting to the park, deciding which playground equipment to use, and finally walking home. Along the way, concepts like conditionals and variables come into play in street maps and diagrams, and a literal bug stands in for the sort that programmers will inevitably need to find and solve. The lesson culminates in an actual sample of very simple code with labels that unpack each instruction…plus a pop quiz to lay out a decision tree for crossing the street, because if “your grown-up can explain it, that shows they understand it!” That goes for kids, too—and though Spiro doesn’t take the logical next step and furnish leads to actual manuals, young (and not so young) fledgling coders will find plenty of good ones around, such as Get Coding! (2017), published by Candlewick, or Rachel Ziter’s Coding From Scratch (2018).
A lighthearted first look at an increasingly useful skill. (glossary) (Informational picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: Oct. 10, 2023
ISBN: 9781623543181
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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