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WHAT DO ROOTS DO

Name: WHAT DO ROOTS DO
Author: Kathleen V. Kudlinski
ISBN: 1-55971-896-X

by Kathleen V. Kudlinski & illustrated by David Schuppert ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2005

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Casting her text into verse to no obvious purpose or benefit, Kudlinski offers only a partial answer to the title question. Bypassing such topics as the role of roots in absorbing nutrients, how they fit into underground ecosystems and much besides, she confines herself to four points: They hold plants in place; take in water; will “probably” kill the plant if broken off; and are sometimes edible. Though his smiling young gardeners are awkwardly drawn, Schuppert does offer artfully angled cutaway views of lush flowers and foliage above, spreading root systems below—providing some visual appeal while effectively showing that there’s more to plants than meets the eye. But younger naturalists will absorb more from the likes of Allan Fowler’s Taking Root (2000) or the plethora of more widely focused accounts of how plants grow. (Picture book/nonfiction. 5-7)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2005

ISBN: 1-55971-896-X

Page Count: 32

Publisher: NorthWord

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2005

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE HUMAN BODY!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski ; illustrated by Debbie Tilley

- BOOK REVIEW
BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE WEATHER!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski ; illustrated by Sebastià Serra

- BOOK REVIEW
BOY, WERE WE WRONG ABOUT THE SOLAR SYSTEM!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski & illustrated by John Rocco

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ROSIE REVERE, ENGINEER

by Andrea Beaty ; illustrated by David Roberts ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 3, 2013

Earnest and silly by turns, it doesn’t quite capture the attention or the imagination, although surely its heart is in the...

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Rhymed couplets convey the story of a girl who likes to build things but is shy about it. Neither the poetry nor Rosie’s projects always work well.

Rosie picks up trash and oddments where she finds them, stashing them in her attic room to work on at night. Once, she made a hat for her favorite zookeeper uncle to keep pythons away, and he laughed so hard that she never made anything publicly again. But when her great-great-aunt Rose comes to visit and reminds Rosie of her own past building airplanes, she expresses her regret that she still has not had the chance to fly. Great-great-aunt Rose is visibly modeled on Rosie the Riveter, the iconic, red-bandanna–wearing poster woman from World War II. Rosie decides to build a flying machine and does so (it’s a heli-o-cheese-copter), but it fails. She’s just about to swear off making stuff forever when Aunt Rose congratulates her on her failure; now she can go on to try again. Rosie wears her hair swooped over one eye (just like great-great-aunt Rose), and other figures have exaggerated hairdos, tiny feet and elongated or greatly rounded bodies. The detritus of Rosie’s collections is fascinating, from broken dolls and stuffed animals to nails, tools, pencils, old lamps and possibly an erector set. And cheddar-cheese spray.

Earnest and silly by turns, it doesn’t quite capture the attention or the imagination, although surely its heart is in the right place. (historical note) (Picture book. 5-7)

Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2013

ISBN: 978-1-4197-0845-9

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Abrams

Review Posted Online: July 16, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2013

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
LILA GREER, TEACHER OF THE YEAR
by Andrea Beaty ; illustrated by David Roberts

- BOOK REVIEW
AARON SLATER, ILLUSTRATOR
by Andrea Beaty ; illustrated by David Roberts

- BOOK REVIEW
ONE GIRL
by Andrea Beaty ; illustrated by Dow Phumiruk

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WATER

by Frank Asch & edited by Frank Asch ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 1995

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``Water is dew. Water is ice and snow.'' No matter what form it takes, seldom has plain old water appeared so colorful as in this rainbow-hued look at rain, dew, snowflakes, clouds, rivers, floods, and seas. Asch celebrates water's many forms with a succinct text and lush paintings done in mostly in softly muted watercolors of aqua, green, rose, blue, and yellow. They look as if they were created with a wet-on-wet technique that makes every hue lightly bleed into its neighbor. Water appears as ribbons of color, one sliding into the other, while objects that are not (in readers' minds) specifically water-like—trees, rocks, roots—are similarly colored. Perhaps the author intends to show water is everything and everything is water, but the concept is not fully realized for this age group. The whole is charming, but more successful as art than science. Though catalogued as nonfiction, this title will be better off in the picture book section. (Picture book/nonfiction. 5-7)