Sometimes wonderfully silly, always enlightening, this book branches out to become profoundly moving.
Trees and humans are alike in many ways.
The roughly 3.4 trillion trees on Earth are more than just big plants there to provide humans with wood. They’re highly evolved, community-driven networkers that grow and adapt in ways that people can’t see. In Bunting’s capable hands, trees are also funny and loving; the book combines science and dad jokes to convey the many lessons we can learn from our woodsy friends. Clever illustrations help make the point that, like us, trees are living, social things, such as a human lung drawn to look like an upside-down tree or a tree’s root system drawn to resemble the folds of a human brain and called a “subterranean cerebrum.” Bunting details the ways that trees use their complex root system (“the wood-wide web”) to help each other (for instance, when a tree is injured, other trees send nutrients) and how they change the way they grow (e.g., making sure branches closer to the sun grow more) to ensure survival. The narrative then shifts from silly jokes (“How do you make an oak tree laugh? Tell it acorn-y joke”) to rather insightful lessons from nature. Like trees, Bunting suggests, people should look out for others, stay centered when things get tough, and most of all, “Grow slow, grow strong.” People depicted are racially diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Sometimes wonderfully silly, always enlightening, this book branches out to become profoundly moving. (Informational picture book. 4-10)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56781-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
Erupt into applause for this picture book of the first magma-tude.
A deceptively simple, visually appealing, comprehensive explanation of volcanoes.
Gibbons packs an impressive number of facts into this browsable nonfiction picture book. The text begins with the awe of a volcanic eruption: “The ground begins to rumble…ash, hot lava and rock, and gases shoot up into the air.” Diagrams of the Earth’s structural layers—inner and outer core, mantle, and crust—undergird a discussion about why volcanoes occur. Simple maps of the Earth’s seven major tectonic plates show where volcanoes are likeliest to develop. Other spreads with bright, clearly labeled illustrations cover intriguing subtopics: four types of volcanoes and how they erupt; underwater volcanoes; well-known volcanoes and historic volcanic eruptions around the world; how to be safe in the vicinity of a volcano; and the work of scientists studying volcanoes and helping to predict eruptions. A page of eight facts about volcanoes wraps things up. The straightforward, concise prose will be easy for young readers to follow. As always, Gibbons manages to present a great deal of information in a compact form.
Erupt into applause for this picture book of the first magma-tude. (Nonfiction picture book. 4-9)Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4569-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again.
Cece loves asking “why” and “what if.”
Her parents encourage her, as does her science teacher, Ms. Curie (a wink to adult readers). When Cece and her best friend, Isaac, pair up for a science project, they choose zoology, brainstorming questions they might research. They decide to investigate whether dogs eat vegetables, using Cece’s schnauzer, Einstein, and the next day they head to Cece’s lab (inside her treehouse). Wearing white lab coats, the two observe their subject and then offer him different kinds of vegetables, alone and with toppings. Cece is discouraged when Einstein won’t eat them. She complains to her parents, “Maybe I’m not a real scientist after all….Our project was boring.” Just then, Einstein sniffs Cece’s dessert, leading her to try a new way to get Einstein to eat vegetables. Cece learns that “real scientists have fun finding answers too.” Harrison’s clean, bright illustrations add expression and personality to the story. Science report inserts are reminiscent of The Magic Schoolbus books, with less detail. Biracial Cece is a brown, freckled girl with curly hair; her father is white, and her mother has brown skin and long, black hair; Isaac and Ms. Curie both have pale skin and dark hair. While the book doesn’t pack a particularly strong emotional or educational punch, this endearing protagonist earns a place on the children’s STEM shelf.
A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again. (glossary) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 19, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-249960-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
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