Captivating lessons from the past that are all the more relevant today.
Focusing on 14 cultures spanning more than 40,000 years, archeologist Dave invites readers to “celebrate equality, inclusivity, and sustainability across the ancient world.”
Though many may assume that misogyny was pervasive in the ancient world, the author spotlights the hunter-gatherer society of Çatalhöyük (in what is now Turkey), where men and women were considered equals. While racist historians have stated that Black Africans weren’t capable of great achievements, the author counters that claim by citing the city of Great Zimbabwe. Sustainability might sound like a more recent concept, but from 2500 to 1900 B.C.E., the inhabitants of the city of Mohenjo-daro, in modern-day Pakistan, drank rainwater and used an inspired sewage system that brought waste directly to farmers who used it to fertilize crops. Dave examines 50 artifacts that archeologists have studied to understand these cultures—for instance, small handprints on the walls of Chauvet prove that women and children created cave paintings. Dave’s explanations are cogent and her content is fascinating and well supported; discussions of the ethics of archeology are especially noteworthy. At times, she strays into generalization (a heading states “Women Triumphed at the Ancient Olympic Games” when she presents evidence of one particular woman). Still, those who are familiar only with the history taught in textbooks will come away surprised and enlightened. Bright and cheerful illustrations are detailed in their depictions of cultural practices and artifacts.
Captivating lessons from the past that are all the more relevant today. (information on archeology, glossary) (Nonfiction. 7-13)Pub Date: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781419771200
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Magic Cat
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2024
An authentic and moving time capsule of middle school angst, trauma, and joy.
Through the author’s own childhood diary entries, a seventh grader details her inner life before and after 9/11.
Alyssa’s diary entries start in September 2000, in the first week of her seventh grade year. She’s 11 and dealing with typical preteen concerns—popularity and anxiety about grades—along with other things more particular to her own life. She’s shuffling between Queens and Manhattan to share time between her divorced parents and struggling with thick facial hair and classmates who make her feel like she’s “not a whole person” due to her mixed White and Puerto Rican heritage. Alyssa is endlessly earnest and awkward as she works up the courage to talk to her crush, Alejandro; gushes about her dreams of becoming a shoe designer; and tries to solve her burgeoning unibrow problem. The diaries also have a darker side, as a sense of impending doom builds as the entries approach 9/11, especially because Alyssa’s father works in finance in the World Trade Center. As a number of the diary entries are taken directly from the author’s originals, they effortlessly capture the loud, confusing feelings middle school brings out. The artwork, in its muted but effective periwinkle tones, lends a satisfying layer to the diary’s accessible and delightful format.
An authentic and moving time capsule of middle school angst, trauma, and joy. (author's note) (Graphic memoir. 8-13)Pub Date: Aug. 17, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-77427-9
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care.
In 1977, the oil carrier Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of oil into a formerly pristine Alaskan ocean inlet, killing millions of birds, animals, and fish. Despite a cleanup, crude oil is still there.
The Winters foretold the destructive powers of the atomic bomb allusively in The Secret Project (2017), leaving the actuality to the backmatter. They make no such accommodations to young audiences in this disturbing book. From the dark front cover, on which oily blobs conceal a seabird, to the rescuer’s sad face on the back, the mother-son team emphasizes the disaster. A relatively easy-to-read and poetically heightened text introduces the situation. Oil is pumped from the Earth “all day long, all night long, / day after day, year after year” in “what had been unspoiled land, home to Native people // and thousands of caribou.” The scale of extraction is huge: There’s “a giant pipeline” leading to “enormous ships.” Then, crash. Rivers of oil gush out over three full-bleed wordless pages. Subsequent scenes show rocks, seabirds, and sea otters covered with oil. Finally, 30 years later, animals have returned to a cheerful scene. “But if you lift a rock… // oil / seeps / up.” For an adult reader, this is heartbreaking. How much more difficult might this be for an animal-loving child?
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care. (author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 9-12)Pub Date: March 31, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3077-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
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