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The SB&F Reviews page is updated regularly with new, unpublished, reviews. See this week's featured reviews below. Check back often for the latest science book reviews from SB&F.
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| Featured Children's Book Review |
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Laman, Tim, and Cheryl Knott. Face to Face with Orangutans. (Illus.; from the Face to Face with Animals Series.) Washington, DC: National Geographic Society, 2009. 32pp. $16.95. 2009000170. ISBN 9781426304651. Glossary; Index; C.I.P.
Level: K-JH, GA
Rating: + + |
| Bearing the National Geographic logo, this slender volume has a high standard to meet. Fortunately, it lives up to expectations. In a highly visual age, the photographic skills of the author, a professional photographer, draw in anyone who flips through the pages. Although the book is aimed at a young audience, anyone glancing at it will be captivated by the close-up shots of orangutans in their native environment. The beauty of the pictures entices the reader, making him or her want to read the text to learn more. Here, too, the book succeeds. The photos are accompanied by clearly written, accurate, and informative text. A map explains the distribution of orangutans in the wild. The glossary, the section labeled “facts at a glance,” and a list of references, including web resources, are well presented and easy to access. In addition, the book contains a section on how the author and his wife (the primary orangutan researcher) gather their material. It is rare, and very welcome, to see the process of research explained to a young audience. Such details may well inspire a future generation of researchers. Although the author has an agenda—the preservation of orangutans and their rain-forest habitat—it is clearly stated and doesn’t detract from the primary mission of informing curious minds. The call to action on behalf of orangutans contains simple, doable suggestions, such as visiting a zoo that has orangutans. Though targeting a young audience, this book is suitable for those just looking at its pictures, as well as adults reading it to children. --Sharon Fetter, Columbus, OH |
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| Featured Young Adult Book Review |
Keller, Michael. Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species: A Graphic Adaptation. (Illus. by Nicolle Rager Fuller.) Emmaus, PA: Rodale, 2009. 192pp. $14.99. 2009011387. ISBN 9781605299488. C.I.P.
Level: YA, C, T
Rating: + + |
This book will be fascinating even to a reader who is already well versed on Darwin’s work and his scientific conclusions regarding evolution. The amazing drawings, along with the diverse examples, really make his work come to life. The reader will feel as if he or she is discovering natural selection for the first time.
Throughout the book, examples abound to show all the facets of evolution and how changes could arise in nature. In every case, the illustrations make the concepts come to life, leading the reader to think even more deeply about the process. Besides evolution, so many science concepts are highlighted that this one book could be the jumping-off point for the study of genetics, embryology, predator-prey relationships, ecosystems, botany, and more. The scientific method shines through loud and clear, with Darwin shown continually experimenting and testing hypotheses. He was a remarkable scientist, and the dedication and creativity with which he pursued the scientific method cannot help but be appreciated. The language in the book is sophisticated, and although the illustrations make it more accessible, I believe that this book would be best read by high school or college students. --Scott Runkel, The Community School, Sun Valley, ID |
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| Featured Adult Book Review |
Buller, Laura, et al. Open Me Up. (Illus.) NY: DK Publishing, 2009. 256pp. $24.99. ISBN 9780756655327. Index; C.I.P.
Level: GA
Rating: + + |
| The title "Open me up" is an invitation to be become completely immersed in this volume. With the high-quality design that readers have come to expect, DK's new book is more like a hard-copy version of an interactive museum exhibit or of a densely networked website than anything else. Each chapter highlights a different body part or organ system and delivers it through such clever hooks as CSI case studies, report cards, recipes, and game instructions. Humorous metaphors and visual puns create the framework for each section's layout. (Imagine the circulatory system mapped as train lines in "The Tube Network," with a legend to indicate vein lines and interchange junctions (pp. 158-159); or a movie poster with a title that proclaims "It started as an innocent laboratory experiment...THE "X" MAN. Starring Nobel-prize winning Professor Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen, the man who discovered X-rays!" (pp. 64-65)).
Clearly, this book is meant to be read forward, backward, upside down, and sideways. Readers may glance at the titles, sample the captions, or trace the meandering text that crosses each colorful double-page spread and, in either case, be swept up on both an enjoyable and an educational ride. Not only is this a valuable collection of facts about human physiology, but it is an irresistible melange of medical history, psychology, myth, fact, and lore concerning the human body. Its creative mix of comics, collages, maps, diagrams, photography, and illustrations of all styles and genres ensures that there is something to satisfy any aesthetic taste and to appeal to any style of learning. Reading this volume makes you wonder whether you are holding a book or engaging in an interactive multimedia experience. --Camilla Faye Matuk, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL |
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