A science tale told with pizzazz.
The life and history of the carbon atom.
Stewart and Álvarez Miguéns present their subjects as affable characters traveling through space and time, exploring the universe, and entering our bodies. In conversational, child-friendly language, the author defines an atom and explains how carbon atoms landed on Earth (the “BAM” of the title), rearranged themselves by joining with oxygen to form carbon dioxide, erupted from a volcano, and carried on to visit all of Earth. In one example, a carbon molecule travels through a tree leaf and joins up with oxygen and hydrogen molecules to form glucose. Eaten by a dinosaur, the carbon atom is later exhaled out into the atmosphere. Stewart digs up some fun places carbon atoms can be found, like a crab shell, a lump of coal, and even the maple syrup that smothers a stack of pancakes, which a brown-skinned child gobbles up, thereby ingesting many carbon atoms. The youngster gets a burst of energy and later emits the “BURP” of the title. Stewart’s extensive backmatter expands upon the nuts and bolts of carbon atoms, responding to questions such as “How much of my body is made of carbon?” or “Could a carbon atom that’s in my body now have spent time in a dinosaur?” Álvarez Miguéns’ digital illustrations depict the carbon atom with big, charming eyes and theatrically gesturing arms. She deftly spotlights the atoms as they travel and rearrange themselves.
A science tale told with pizzazz. (more about carbon, the carbon cycle, information on fossil fuels and the climate crisis, author’s and illustrator’s notes, selected sources, for further exploration) (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9781623544461
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
A gleeful game for budding naturalists.
Artfully cropped animal portraits challenge viewers to guess which end they’re seeing.
In what will be a crowd-pleasing and inevitably raucous guessing game, a series of close-up stock photos invite children to call out one of the titular alternatives. A page turn reveals answers and basic facts about each creature backed up by more of the latter in a closing map and table. Some of the posers, like the tail of an okapi or the nose on a proboscis monkey, are easy enough to guess—but the moist nose on a star-nosed mole really does look like an anus, and the false “eyes” on the hind ends of a Cuyaba dwarf frog and a Promethea moth caterpillar will fool many. Better yet, Lavelle saves a kicker for the finale with a glimpse of a small parasitical pearlfish peeking out of a sea cucumber’s rear so that the answer is actually face and butt. “Animal identification can be tricky!” she concludes, noting that many of the features here function as defenses against attack: “In the animal world, sometimes your butt will save your face and your face just might save your butt!” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gleeful game for budding naturalists. (author’s note) (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781728271170
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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