Review of The Kitchen Pantry Scientist Math for Kids, by Rebecca Rapoport and Allanna Chung

Children's Nonfiction Review, Mathematical, Starred Review 0

The Kitchen Pantry Scientist

Math for Kids

Fun Math Games and Activities Inspired by Awesome Mathematicians, Past and Present

by Rebecca Rapoport and Allanna Chung

Quarto Publishing, 2022. 128 pages.
Review written January 8, 2022, from a library book
Starred Review
2023 Mathical Book Prize Honor Book, Ages 8-10

Oh, this book is wonderful!

A lot of general books about math for kids have the same old stuff you’ve heard before, presented in a fairly random order.

This book is organized around twenty-two biographies of distinguished mathematicians, and then has a hands-on game or activity (some using templates found at the back of the book or on the accompanying website). The activities are very cool! I think I am going to print out the templates for the hexaflexagons. Some of the other activities include making a car with square wheels, a mancala game, a binary bracelet, and an alien city.

The activities are illustrated with clear photographs and have step-by-step instructions. The biographies take up one page, with a full-page illustration of the mathematician and symbols around them representing their work.

I loved that I hadn’t heard of a majority of the mathematicians presented, even though I’ve read a lot of books like this. I also loved that most were women and/or people of color. Because there are a lot of white men in math, and it was exciting to me to hear about others. And everyone chosen had done important work.

A really wonderful book about math that will make the reader want to explore and make and do.

dailyepsilon.com
Quarto.com

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Review of Yasmeen Lari, Green Architect, written by Marzieh Abbas, illustrated by Hoda Hadadi

Biography, Children's Nonfiction Review, Starred Review 0

Yasmeen Lari, Green Architect

The True Story of Pakistan’s First Woman Architect

written by Marzieh Abbas
illustrated by Hoda Hadadi

Clarion Books (HarperCollins), 2024. 40 pages.
Review written January 13, 2025, from a library book.
Starred Review

I’ve gotten used to high-quality picture book biographies, so I tend to resist reviewing them unless that are something extra-special. This book features the life of Yasmeen Lari, who not only was Pakistan’s first female architect, she also is a pioneer in the use of sustainable and low-cost materials that withstand floods and earthquakes.

This picture book has wonderful art, using colorful collage techniques to show the structures Yasmeen created and studied. As a child, she lived through Partition and saw the creation of Pakistan as its own country. Her father was an architect, and she followed in his footsteps. But the book shows how, after her success as an architect, she became a force for conservation and restoration of historic buildings. And then after catastrophic floods and earthquakes, she looked at the way those historic buildings had lasted centuries and used the ideas to help rebuild.

Yasmeen designed and sketched.

For the earthquake-prone areas, she suggested bamboo crisscrossing lattice sandwiching mud-lime brick walls from ground to ceiling.

For the flood-prone areas, she proposed hexagonal structures of mud-lime brick walls to be positioned on bamboo stilts, eight feet high.

The book shows her making prototypes for durable, low cost, zero carbon, zero waste buildings.

Yasmeen had an idea – cocreation!

She would train the poverty-stricken villagers to build their own houses.

Then they would travel to other villages and train more villagers.

In this way, she was responsible for building over 40,000 disaster-resistant homes.

The back matter has photos of this remarkable woman, who is still living, and her work. I am happy to have learned about her, and am glad for this book so kids will learn about someone who excelled in her profession, and then used that excellence to make the world a better place for many more.

marziehabbas.com
hoda-hadadi.com
harpercollinschildrens.com

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Review of Whalesong, by Zachariah OHora

Children's Nonfiction Review, Science, Starred Review 0

Whalesong

The True Story of the Musician Who Talked to Orcas

by Zachariah OHora

Tundra, 2024. 44 pages.
Review written December 30, 2024, from a library book.
Starred Review

This is a picture book version of the true story of how a scientist and a musician discovered that orcas would respond to music played to them.

The story begins in 1971, when the musician and his two kids moved to Vancouver Island in British Columbia and discovered they loved to go to the aquarium there. They noticed a scientist playing music to the orcas and got the idea of the musician, Paul Horn, playing his flute to them. When the orcas responded, everyone was amazed, and the family made a habit of going to the aquarium and playing to the orcas.

But while Paul Horn was away on a trip, one of the orcas died, and the remaining orca was listless and refusing to eat. When Paul came back and played happy music, over time, they were able to coax the bereaved orca to eat again.

It all makes a lovely picture book, with the kids’ participation making the story all the more fun. I’ve always been a fan of Zachariah Ohora’s illustrations, and I love the way they illuminate this true tale. He’s also got a gift for telling the story simply.

I also like that the scientist involved, Dr. Paul Spong, went on to found an organization that studies orcas in the wild and works to free all captive orcas. I learned that on the last page of the picture book text, with more details for adults in the back matter.

I love that kids who read this book will never question that orcas can communicate – and can even communicate with us.

fuzzy.town
penguinrandomhouse.ca

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Review of Calculating Chimpanzees, Brainy Bees, and Other Animals with Mind-Blowing Mathematical Abilities, by Stephanie Gibeault, illustrations by Jaclyn Sinquett

Children's Nonfiction Review, Mathematical, Science, Starred Review 0

Calculating Chimpanzees, Brainy Bees,

and Other Animals with Mind-Blowing Mathematical Abilities

by Stephanie Gibeault
illustrations by Jaclyn Sinquett

MIT Kids Press, 2024. 88 pages.
Review written December 18, 2024, from my own copy, sent to me by the publisher.
Starred Review

Here’s a book that tells a fascinating story about what goes into mathematical thinking – because it’s telling how scientists figure out how much of it animals are capable of.

First, they look at guppies. Yes, fish! Can guppies, with their tiny brains, count? Well, it turns out that when faced with two alternatives, guppies can choose the larger shoal to swim near (the better to not be eaten by predators). While explaining the experiments the scientists did, we learn about relative numerosity judgment, object-tracking systems, approximate number systems, and the numerical size and numerical distance effects.

Next up are hyenas. Researchers recorded the whoops of different hyenas and simulated a group approaching with hyena whoops. The hyenas would change behavior if there were more or fewer hyenas in the simulated group than their own group. They were wary with more intruders and aggressive with fewer. Along the way, the reader learns about subitizing and all the different things that happen when a human counts.

Chapter 3 is about a highly intelligent African grey parrot named Alex and how he even learned to use numerals and do simple math, even when the question was given with numerals. The super-interesting story of how they designed experiments for Alex to show he really understood what he was doing also teach the reader about equivalence (swapping four objects for the numeral 4, for example) and ordinality.

Next was a chapter about chimpanzees, and, yes, they can do calculations. Some experiments they described involved hiding groups of oranges in different places – and the smart chimp could pick the number that matched the total number of oranges. Even more amazing, when they put numerals in place of the oranges, the chimp still picked the correct total the very first time they tried it. This chapter covers ways humans – and chimps – do addition (though we don’t know which one this chimp was using) – counting all and counting on.

The final chapter was about honeybees. The scientists used sugar-water treats to train bees to choose the smaller number when presented with pictures of shapes – and the bees could do it even when the card had zero objects. Along the way in this chapter, the author talks about the concept of zero and how it did take humans a long time to grasp it.

And for all of the chapters there’s added value of an interview with the scientists who did the experiment plus a page for each chapter of related experiments you can try with a friend. The introduction and sections threaded through all the chapters include the story of the horse Clever Hans and how scientists use precautions to be sure they aren’t tipping the animals off.

I thought this whole book was completely fascinating, and it’s written in an engaging way that should capture the attention of the 9- to 12-year-olds it’s designed for. Really interesting stuff! You’ll gain insight on the thought processes behind the way you – and animals – do math.

mitkidspress.com

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Review of The Squad, by Christina Soontornvat and Joanna Cacao

Biography, Children's Nonfiction Review, Graphic Memoir, Starred Review 0

The Squad

written by Christina Soontornvat
illustrated by Joanna Cacao
colors by Wes Dzioba

Graphix (Scholastic), 2024. 288 pages.
Review written December 11, 2024, from a library book.
Starred Review

I have long maintained that graphic novels are the absolutely perfect format for memoirs of middle school. You can show all the emotion in its exaggerated immediacy and let kids today know that middle school has been the way it is since long before they had to deal with it. In The Tryout, Christina Soontornvat expressed the aggravation and terror of trying out for cheerleader in front of the entire seventh grade class. The Squad covers eighth grade, and she and her two best friends decide to try out again. This time, they will also perform before a panel of adult judges, so it doesn’t all rest on what the other students think.

But on top of that tense situation, Christina learns that her parents are splitting up. She tries to put on a happy face, even works on plans to get them back together, but ultimately she and her mother move out of their house to an apartment, and her mother starts working much more of the time.

The Squad portrays Christina’s anger and frustration over that situation, as well as her first crush, her first kiss, frustrations with racist kids, friendship conflicts, and all the other things that go with being in middle school.

Another classic middle school graphic memoir.

soontornvat.com
scholastic.com/graphix

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Review of Honeybee Rescue, by Loree Griffin Burns, photographs by Ellen Harasimowicz

Children's Nonfiction Review, Science, Starred Review 0

Honeybee Rescue

A Backyard Drama

by Loree Griffin Burns
photographs by Ellen Harasimowicz

Charlesbridge, 2022. 40 pages.
Review written December 29, 2022, from a library book
Starred Review

Honeybee Rescue is a true story, simply told, of a beehive discovered in a place it shouldn’t be. So instead of killing the bees to clean out his old garage, the beekeeper called in Mr. Nelson, an expert in honeybee rescue.

The story shows the whole process with photographs and simple language. The author explains how bees swarm and form a new hive when their old one is getting crowded. Then they showed how Mr. Nelson used his gentle no-kill bee vacuum to remove the bees and then carefully use the honeycomb they’ve already made to put into frames for a new hive.

Especially amazing is that Mr. Nelson doesn’t wear any protective gear when working with the bees. He explains that if you’re gentle with bees, they’ll be gentle with you.

Of course, along the way, the reader learns all kinds of information about bees and how they make honey. The book is fascinating and beautiful and will leave kids curious about bees.

loreeburns.com
ellenharasimowicz.com
charlesbridge.com

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Review of What’s the Difference: Animals, by Susie Rae

Children's Nonfiction Review, Science 0

What’s the Difference

Animals

by Susie Rae

DK, 2022. 80 pages.
Review written 2/3/2023 from a library book.

I just think this book is cool. With DK’s clear photographic style, this book takes 28 pairs of animals that are often confused and shows you the differences between them.

Some examples:

Leopard or Jaguar?
Frog or Toad?
Crocodile or Alligator?
Dolphin or Porpoise?
Seal or Sea Lion?
Falcon or Hawk?
Rabbit or Hare?

It’s all laid out clearly, with photographs, plus fact bars on the side and other similar animals mentioned as well. I thought it was a lot of fun to read through.

My one quibble is that although the animals come from all over the world, many of the more common examples (like seagulls and frogs) used animals from Europe, since, after all, DK is based in England. But that was a minor quibble. Not everything has to be America-centric.

A fun book for everyone who likes animal facts.

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Review of How Old Am I? by JR

Art, Biography, Children's Nonfiction Review, Photography, Starred Review 0

How Old Am I?

1 – 100

Faces From Around the World

by JR
The Inside Out Project

Phaidon Press, 2021. 216 pages.
Review written July 28, 2021, from a library book
Starred Review

The concept of this book is very easy to explain. The execution of the concept is utterly delightful.

This book shows the faces of one hundred people from all over the world. Each one is a different age. The faces are presented in order of age, featuring the 1-year-old first and the 100-year-old last.

The questions the participants are asked are presented at the front of the book. (I actually didn’t notice this at first, but I got the idea quickly anyway.) Here are the questions:

Hello! [The person answers in their own language.]

What is your name?

How old are you?

Where do you live? Where were you born? [A small map features these places. A very large variety of places are presented.]

What makes you happy? What is your wish for the world? No matter how old we are or where we live, we each have a story to tell. What’s yours?

The section answering those last questions is short, but there’s lots that can be conveyed. Here are a few examples:

Here’s how 6-year-old Noam answered:

I am super excited about my next birthday – I wish it was today! I am proud because I already know how to read, dance, and go to sleepovers. When I’m 18, I want to be the President of America. Chocolate is what makes me happy. I wish the whole world was made of chocolate and that when you want to eat some chocolate, you can just take it from the walls around you. Chocolate is what makes everybody happy.

34-year-old Maria, from Russia, says:

When I was little I thought anything was possible. I still believe this now! When I was around 5 to 8, I had a wild imagination. I could be a princess one day, or a firefighter or teacher another. I’m still interested in different lives and now have a job making documentaries – movies that show the world around us and the lives of real people. I learn about all kinds of people in different places – from Tokyo to California, from Norway to Madagascar.

And 57-year-old Safarina from Indonesia:

It doesn’t matter how old I am, I always look forward to my next birthday. At 27 I got married, at 28 I had my first baby girl, and at 38 I had my baby boy and finished my studies, so all of those ages mean a lot to me. I am a scientist now, but before that I was a veterinarian, helping animals. I really like working as a scientist because it is exciting and unique. My family, my work, and music make me happy in life.

79-year-old Rafael, from Slovenia, says:

I started going to school when I was 7. Our school was small, old, and made of wood. We didn’t have heating or toilets, and the teachers were very strict. But home was a warm place. I had my parents and my siblings and a cherry tree that was my hideaway. I used to do my homework and studying in my tree. Later I moved to the city and learned to fix and make electrical tools and equipment. I am really proud of my job, and even at my age, I still work.

The last person featured in the book is 100-year-old Beatrice from the USA. She says:

I was a sickly child with a heart problem, and I was allergic to everything, which meant I wasn’t able to run around. When I was 7, I found the local library. I still love to read, and for the last ten years I have been a library volunteer. I never dreamed to be this age. It’s an amazing experience. I am healthy and well, I don’t walk with a cane, and I live alone. That’s not common at my age and something to be grateful for.

These quotations give you a taste, but the full experience comes with the large pictures of their smiling faces and the greetings in so many languages.

The graphic design of the book is also done well, with each person featured with a background slowly going through all the colors of the rainbow. The 1-year-old has a yellow background and so does the 100-year-old, but they’ve gone through all possible shades as the pages change slightly with each turn.

At the back, we’ve got information about the artist who created The Inside Out Project, putting large photos of people on buildings across the world. This book came out of that project. I love the way it includes people from all over the world as a result. This book is truly a delightful experience.

insideoutproject.net
phaidon.com

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Review of True You: A Gender Journey, by Gwen Agna and Shelley Rotner

Art, Children's Nonfiction Review, Photography, Starred Review 0

True You

A Gender Journey

by Gwen Agna and Shelley Rotner
Photographs by Shelley Rotner

Clarion Books (HarperCollins), 2022. 48 pages.
Review written December 13, 2022, from a library book
Starred Review

Hooray! Shelley Rotner, author and photographer of many gorgeous photo-illustrated picture books, has turned her attention to the beautiful variety of children’s genders. Working with another early childhood educator, the two have written a book that explains gender in a way that children can understand. There are also nine pages of back matter with more information and further resources.

As with all of Shelley Rotner’s books, the main feature of the book is big, beautiful photographs of active children.

The book begins:

We are kids!

Girls, boys,
neither,
both,
or just not sure.

The photos show these kids being joyful, curious, and creative.

After some introductions, we meet specific kids, with speech bubbles coming from their pictures. The authors interviewed many kids and used their words. Here are a couple of them:

They thought I was a boy when I was born. But now, sometimes I feel like a girl.

Everyone can dress however they want.

Boys can wear dresses and girls don’t have to.

Another kid —

When I was born, people said I was a girl.
They were right!

I’m a girl because I feel like a girl!

People should love everybody for who they are. Anyone can play with dolls. All the colors are for everyone. Everybody can be strong.

As the book says, “Sometimes kids are just being kids — exploring different things!”

This big beautiful book can touch off accepting and supportive conversations. Whether or not your child is gender-nonconforming, this book will help them understand their peers, with an emphasis on kindness and acceptance. And there are plenty of resources for parents at the back.

gwenagna.com
shelleyrotner.com
harpercollinschildrens.com

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Review of Ode to Grapefruit, by Kari Lavelle, illustrated by Bryan Collier

Biography, Children's Nonfiction Review, Starred Review 0

Ode to Grapefruit

How James Earl Jones Found His Voice

by Kari Lavelle
illustrated by Bryan Collier

Alfred A. Knopf, 2024. 48 pages.
Review written November 8, 2024, from a library book.
Starred Review

Ode to Grapefruit is an exquisitely illustrated picture book biography of James Earl Jones, the actor who gave us the voice of Darth Vader and Mufasa and so many other memorable characters.

The book begins with a scene of James in school, hoping the teacher won’t call on him, and then kids laughing when his words “get stuck.” We learn that James could speak just fine to the animals on the farm at home, but around people, whatever he tried wouldn’t get the words out. So he decided not to talk, just to listen. He was quiet for years.

In high school, he had a professor who loved poetry. He urged James to write his own poetry, and recite it aloud – and it turned out that when he was speaking in the rhythm of poetry, his stuttering wasn’t a problem.

While still a student, James went on to do public speaking in the theater and in debate and won a college scholarship. He still stuttered sometimes, but the main text of the book finishes this way:

After eight years of silence,
James found his voice,
low and booming,
beyond the dark side of fear.

With patience and practice,
the legendary sound
of James Earl Jones
would soon be known
around the world.

I love the way this book uses simple language that younger kids can understand to tell this inspirational story. The text and pictures focus in on key episodes instead of trying to give a grand overview, and that serves the message well of all that James Earl Jones overcame.

This picture book has a large size, and I love the way James Earl Jones’ eyes, almost as distinctive as his voice, hold the gaze of the reader even when he was young. Oh, and “Ode to Grapefruit” was the name of that first poem James wrote and recited – the poem that changed everything for him.

karilavelle.com
rhcbooks.com

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