Tag Archives: science

Review: My Imaginary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadow

Book Review and Content, Historical, Magical Realism, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , ,
My Imaginary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows and Brodi Ashton

My Imaginary Mary (Mary #2)
Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows
HarperTeen
Published August 2, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About My Imaginary Mary

It’s aliiiiiiiive! The bestselling authors of My Lady Jane are back with the electric, poetic, and (almost) historical tale of the one and only Mary Shelley.

Mary may have inherited the brilliant mind of her late mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, but she lives a drab life above her father’s bookstore, waiting for an extraordinary idea that’ll inspire a work worthy of her parentage—and impress her rakishly handsome (and super-secret) beau, Percy Shelley.

Ada Lovelace knows a thing or two about superstar parents, what with her dad being Lord Byron, the most famous poet on Earth. But her passions lie far beyond the arts—in mechanical engineering, to be exact. Alas, no matter how precise Ada’s calculations, there’s always a man willing to claim her ingenious ideas as his own.

Pan, a.k.a. Practical Automaton Number One, is Ada’s greatest idea yet: a machine that will change the world, if only she can figure out how to make him truly autonomous . . . or how to make him work at all.

When fate connects our two masterminds, Mary and Ada learn that they are fae—magical people with the ability to make whatever they imagine become real. But when their dream team results in a living, breathing, thinking PAN, Mary and Ada find themselves hunted by a mad scientist who won’t stop until he finds out how they made a real boy out of spare parts.

With comic genius and a truly electrifying sense of adventure, Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows continue their campaign to turn history on its head in this YA fantasy that’s perfect for fans of The Princess Bride and A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue.

My Review

I really enjoyed both MY LADY JANE and MY CONTRARY MARY, so I was excited about getting into this book. The idea of a story about Ada Lovelace and Mary Shelley also intrigued me, so this sounded like a sure win.

I did enjoy the book, but not as much as the other two that I read. The other books had me laughing out loud more and had a lot more straight up absurdity that really worked for me as a reader. Plus I loved the cameo appearances by characters from MY LADY JANE in MY CONTRARY MARY.

What I think did work really well in this book was the pairing of Ada Byron (Lovelace) and Mary Godwin (Shelley). The science and writing/magic combo fit together well, and I liked the friendship that they shared and how it changed both of their lives.

I also liked the way Pan, created by Ada and Mary, inspired Mary to write FRANKENSTEIN. I thought that was a clever way to layer both a historical fantasy with elements from Mary Shelley’s famous book.

All in all, I’m still really glad I read this one. If you like reimagined history or stories inspired by a classic, I think MY IMAGINARY MARY is a great book to add to your reading list.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Ada has difficulty walking since being ill and uses a cane.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. At one point one character asks questions about the difference between men and women and Mary tries to discreetly tell him that they have different body parts.

Spiritual Content
Some people are Fae and can create things from their imaginations. This magic has a cost– matter cannot be created nor destroyed– so Fae are trained to create carefully.

Violent Content
A man uses chloroform to incapacitate others and kidnap them. He ties several people up and threatens them with being struck by lightning.

Drug Content
Ada’s father drinks wine and reveals secrets he shouldn’t when he is drunk.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of MY IMAGINARY MARY in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Making More by Katherine Roy

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Nonfiction, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Making More: How Life Begins
Katherine Roy
Norton Young Readers
Published March 7, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Making More

Everywhere, all around you, life is making more. From fish to mammals and plants to insects, every organism on Earth must reproduce, and the survival of each species―and of life itself―depends on this and on the diversity it creates.

In this groundbreaking book, Katherine Roy distills the science of reproduction into its simplest components: organisms must meet, merge their DNA, and grow new individuals; and she thoughtfully highlights the astonishing variety of this process with examples from across the natural world, from ferns and butterflies to trout, hawks, rabbits, and more. Lucid, informed, and illuminated by beautiful paintings, Making More weaves a story that seamlessly explains life’s most fundamental process, answers children’s questions, and provides an essential tool for parents, caregivers, and educators.  Full-color throughout.

“Highly recommended for nonfiction and even parenting collections, where it will fly off the shelf with science-loving kids and neutralize any adult melodrama around talking to kids about sex.”― School Library Journal , starred review

My Review

The beautiful, painted illustrations are the first thing about this book that caught my eye. I love the soothing color palette and the way each page makes me feel immersed in nature.

The book addresses how different types of plants and animals make more of themselves in simple terms. I liked the way the author introduced different types of reproduction– crossing versus cloning– and gave simple explanations for why both are important.

Animal classes like fish, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals each have their own page giving an overview of how they reproduce. Some technical terms are present, but used more in diagrams than in the paragraph text. I think the book strikes a great balance between simplifying a complex process for young readers while still presenting real biological information.

I love this book, and I think it’s a great resource for kids who are interested in animals or biology. This is definitely one I want on my own family library shelves, and I think it’d make a great book for classrooms and public libraries.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 9 to 12.

Representation
There are a few illustrations of people. The group illustration shows families of diverse backgrounds.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
The book is about how plants and animals reproduce. The page about mammals does name a penis and vagina and note that they are used in reproduction. The vagina is described as a path to birth. Those descriptions are pretty low key and brief.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
References to predators and parasites preventing some offspring from reaching adulthood.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of MAKING MORE in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Story of More by Hope Jahren

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Nonfiction, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,

The Story of More: How We Got to Climate Change and Where to Go from Here (Adapted for Young Adults)
Hope Jahren
Delacorte Press
Published November 2, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Story of More

Hope Jahren, acclaimed geochemist and geobiologist, details the science behind key inventions, clarifying how electricity, large-scale farming, and automobiles have both helped and harmed our world.

Jahren explains the current and projected consequences of unchecked global warming, from superstorms to rising sea levels, resulting from the unprecedented amounts of greenhouse gases being released into our atmosphere. The links between human consumption habits and our endangered existence are very real, with consequences leading to a crossroads of survival and extinction.

Still, Jahren maintains that our ever-broadening science-based knowledge can help us counter this dilemma. The eye-opening information provided in THE STORY OF MORE will help readers understand the path we must take. If we collectively make informed choices now, Jahren reassures us, our future can be as bright as we imagine it can be.

This young adult adaptation of acclaimed geochemist and geobiologist Hope Jahren’s highly respected nonfiction work is the perfect book for those interested in learning about climate change and how they can contribute to creating a more sustainable future.

My Review

One of the cool things about this book is that it doesn’t strictly talk about climate change in terms of the effects we see today and the industrial causes. I like that the author kind of zooms out and gives a chapter by chapter overview of things. She discusses things like the way human population has changed over thousands of years or the ways in which farming has evolved. Each topic is discussed in only a few pages but paints a much more complete picture of how we got to where we are with carbon levels, food waste, and pollution.

I also like that the book takes time to focus on what individuals can do to make a difference. The issue of Climate Change can be really overwhelming because it feels like the most significant changes have to be made at an industry or government level in order to make a real impact. This doesn’t address how to make those changes specifically. It does look at what meaningful things individuals can do and how making those changes can cause ripple effects across our lives and the lives of others.

One of the most shocking things that the book discussed that I hadn’t heard before actually had to do with the Winter Olympics. The games need a specific environment to be played– snow slopes for instance. The number of places which have the ability to host the games has shrunk considerably since the games began. That was something I hadn’t really specifically thought about before.

I think readers who enjoy books about environmental issues will definitely want to check this one out. If you liked TRASHING THE PLANET or GIRL WARRIORS, then be sure add THE STORY OF MORE to your reading list!

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
The author is a white woman in her 50s.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of THE STORY OF MORE in exchange for my honest review.

Review: What Breathes Through Its Butt by Dr. Emily Grossman

Book Review and Content, Middle Grade 8-12, Nonfiction, , , , , , , , , ,

What Breathes Through Its Butt: Mind-Blowing Science Questions Answered
Dr. Emily Grossman
Illustrated by Alice Bowsher
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published November 10, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About What Breathes Through Its Butt

A funny and interactive book that explains the surprising science behind everyday kid questions.

Why is your elbow called your funny bone? How could you escape the grip of a crocodile’s jaw? Which animal can breathe through its butt? This book uncovers the amazing scientific explanations behind all sorts of questions that can pop into our heads. Can an egg bounce? How can a giraffe’s ridiculously long neck contain the same number of bones as a human’s? How much does the Internet weigh? With delightful interactive features that invite readers to guess answers to questions and make links between different scientific concepts, this is a great book for reluctant readers and STEAM lovers alike.

My Review

Okay, so I’m kind of embarrassed that it took me so long to review this book. I received a copy of WHAT BREATHES THROUGH ITS BUTT from the publisher, but I hadn’t asked for it. This past year I’ve really struggled to keep up with reading and posting reviews in ways that I never struggled before between the pandemic, family stuff, and my own health issues. I’m trying to get caught up, though, and so here I am, posting about this book at last.

One of the reasons it took me SO LONG to read this book is that, to be honest, I found the format of it kind of off-putting. The font is more of a handwriting style font and while it’s broken up into different sections with drawings alongside, I felt like it looked chaotic.

Now that I’ve read the book, I think the font choice might have been designed to support the book’s informal, conversational feel, which if true is a cool idea. I just… yeah. For me, it made the book harder for me to read.

Things I Really Liked

Apart from that, though, I actually enjoyed this book a lot more than I expected to. The conversational style that Dr. Grossman uses kept the pages feeling fun and light. Each section begins with a multiple choice question, like, “How much does the whole of the internet weigh?”, or “Which animal alive today has the strongest bite?” The reader sees four possible answers to pick from, and then the text begins to explore each of the possible answers.

The questions are a bit all over the place, so it’s not a book that focuses on any single topic. There are questions about space, animals, the human body, light, and more.

I’ve never seen a format like this before, but I’m a huge fan now. It made the book feel really interactive, and I found myself invested in reading the answers every time. I thought the illustrations were really fun and cute and definitely matched the tone of the book.

I haven’t read tons of juvenile nonfiction, but of what I’ve read, this book does the best job showing science in action. Each section starts with a question. Then it invites the reader to form a hypothesis. Then it looks at and compares evidence. I’ve never seen a book kind of just DO science the way this one does, and in such a friendly, fun way!

Honestly, I expected to like this book about 25% as much as I actually like it. I’m still not a huge fan of the font choice, but I love the way it makes science accessible and fun. It’s easily the kind of book you can get carried away reading. I think it’s a great pick for a school or classroom library or a budding science lover.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Illustrations show a racially diverse group of kids.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
As you already guessed from the title, this book has some mildly crude language and explores animal behaviors including pooping, burping, and passing gas and the science behind why they happen or their impact on the environment.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog. I received a free copy of WHAT BREATHES THROUGH ITS BUTT in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Environment: Explore, Create and Investigate by Jonathon Litton

Book Review and Content, Nonfiction, , , , , , ,

The Environment: Explore, Create and Investigate
Paul Litton
Illustrated by Pau Morgan
QEB Publishing
Published September 22, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Environment

THE ENVIRONMENT is a simple first introduction to the environment—the air, soil, water, plants, and animals. How do we as humans slot into the natural world around us and how do our actions affect the environment? What on Earth can we do about it?

The book contains three different types of pages: Explore, Investigate, and Create. This structure provides a child-led and hands-on way for children to learn about the world around them. Create pages consist of fun crafts and activities to give children a chance to play and have fun while learning.

My Review

One of the things I really liked about THE ENVIRONMENT is the broad reach of the information it offers and pairs with experiments and activities. While it covers the basics– how important the environment is, how it’s our home as well as home to plants and animals around us– but also pushes beyond that to talk about things less often discussed, like pollution from the fashion industry.

The only thing that I felt was lacking was more definitions/explanations within the text. For example, there’s a project that’s meant to attract “minibeasts,” and I’m not sure what the term minibeasts means. Later on, there’s a section about the Greenhouse Effect which talks about how it’s just like a greenhouse but doesn’t explain what a greenhouse is.

I think this book would be a great companion to an elementary grade environmental science unit or a really cool book to use as a frame for summer projects, since there are a lot of activities and experiments to support the information in the chapters.

Readers interested in learning about caring for the earth or who enjoy interactive activities will enjoy this book.

If you have slightly older readers looking for information on how humans can cause harm to the environment, I also recommend Trashing the Planet by Stuart A. Kallen.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 6 to 12.

Representation
Illustrations show a diverse group of children interacting with experiments, projects, and the environment.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
One section includes information about an indigenous group in New Zealand who believe rivers and mountains are our relatives.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog.

Review: The Metric System by David Adler

Book Review and Content, Nonfiction, , , , , ,

The Metric System
David Adler
Holiday House
Published November 3, 2020

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About The Metric System

Think metric! A fun illustrated primer on the internationally recognized metric system for kids.

Used in almost every country in the world, the metric system is an easy-to-use way of calculating length, distance, weight, and volume. Look at the label of a soft drink. You’ll see both ounces and milliliters or gallons and liters listed. For kids who love to interact with their environment and measure and build things, knowledge of the metric system is a must.

Filled with do-it-yourself activities, bright illustrations, and valuable kid-friendly information on how to convert inches into centimeters, pounds into kilograms, and much more, this latest from trusted STEM creators David A. Adler and Edward Miller will have kids thinking in metric in no time. Each book includes a ruler with metric and imperial measurements that can be cut out from the jacket flaps.

David A. Adler and Edward Miller have collaborated on over 10 math books for children, many of which have received praise from educators and starred reviews from Kirkus Reviews and School Library Journal.

My Review

This is a cute, straightforward book that briefly discusses the history of the metric system and how different types of quantities are measured with the system. The Metric System shows weight, liquid measurements and length or distance measurements as well as how to convert to and from feet, miles, pounds, or ounces into Metric measurements.

It’s a super quick read, and the text encourages kids to follow directions to make a ruler and a box to practice measurements and better understand the concepts. It seems like a great pick to have in a classroom library for a teacher or homeschool family.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 10.

Representation
Characters pictured include a brown-skinned girl and white boy.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of The Metric System in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog.