Author: Chris Ferrie
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Copyright: April 3, 2018
ISBN: 978-1492656180
Age Range: 4-8 years
Reading Level: Not evaluated yet
Cost: $12.32
SUMMARY: This science parody of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? follows the rhythmic pattern of a beloved Eric Carle book.
"Mani, Mani Who do you see? I see Charles Darwin and the diversity of species."
Ferrie introduces budding young scientists to just a few of the many famous scientists who have gone before. Albert Einstein, Katherine Johnson, Chien-Shiung Wu, and Alan Turing are just a few of the scientists included in the book. What is most exciting is the inclusion of scientist from all different disciplines: Biology, Chemistry, Math, Computer Science, Botany, and Physics. Ferrie also includes scientists from all over the globe as well.
CRITIQUE: While some of the rhymes are a bit forced, the book introduces little tidbits about the scientists in a fun manner. Unfortunately, there do not appear to be any reviews of this title by Kirkus, School Library Journal, etc. As for awards, this title has not been mentioned in any best of lists yet. It is a newer title, and perhaps that is the reason for the lack of reviews. Honestly, I had never heard of some of these scientists before, and this book has spurred my interest in finding out more about these lesser known scientists. The author does a nice job of balancing male to female scientists and shows quite a bit of diversity. You are Not going to find a book about all white male scientists here.
FEATURES INCLUDED: At the end of the parody there is an "About the Scientists" section where you can learn exactly what each scientist was famous for. While the section is short and sweet the information is age appropriate.
EXAMPLES:
Here you begin to see the diversity of countries included. Anna Mani was an Indian physicist and meteorologist. You also see the use of exaggerated head size providing a cartoon feel to the graphics.
The author also included little illustrations relating to the area of study for each scientist. Katherine Johnson was a mathematician an worked for NASA. The author also drew clothing that was related to the time period each scientist lived. 
Here is an example of a Nobel prize winning Egyptian-American scientist Ahmed Zewail. To be honest I had never heard of him before. This book highlights lesser known scientists.
At the end, like Brown Bear, Brown Bear you see the cast of characters fully. The author did a great job of showcasing the diversity in science. Six women, six men, some famous from the 1800's others recently famous. Egyptian, American, English, Indian, Chinese, Scottish, and French-Polish are represented.
COMPARISONS/RECOMMENDED READING:
This title would make a nice companion book to Scientist, Scientist, showing students how they can be scientists as well.
SUGGESTED USES: Scientist, Scientist would make a fun STEM read-aloud for library story time or to a classroom. The rhythmic pattern makes the book easy to follow and lends itself well to being read to a crowd. For teachers wanting their students to learn more about scientist, and the myriad of science disciplines this title provides a crash course. I can also see this title being used to teach the concept of a parody. Teachers could reading Brown, Bear then Scientist, Scientist and discuss the literary format. Students could then write their own parody. While parodies are covered in grades 6-12, there is no reason books like this could not be used with older youth for this concept.
Indiana State Standards (Science & Engineering Process Standards):
SEPS.3-Scientists and engineers are constructing and performing investigations in the field or laboratory, working collaboratively as well as individually. Researching analogous problems in order to gain insight into possible solutions allows them to make conjectures about the form and meaning of the solution.
SEPS.6-Scientists and engineers use their results from the investigation in constructing descriptions and explanations, citing the interpretation of data, connecting the investigation to how the natural and designed world(s) work.
When I was looking through this book, I was a little worried you'd fallen for one of those adult conceit books that have been popping up more and more recently, like "Goodnight, Mr. Darcy." The more I look at and consider it though, it seems be a both a children's book and an adult conceit. For adults, its a callback to a classic they likely grew up on. For kids, it's a brief introduction to important scientific figures who might very well become their role models. What ultimately convinced me that it was for kids, though, were the explanations of who these people are, an addition a conceit book wouldn't have even bothered with.
ReplyDeleteAs a former teacher I found that rhyming books and parodies really get kids excited. Even my middle school science students would have loved this book. It combines a pattern they know with information they are unfamiliar with. I thought it was a quick and dirty biography for scientists children may not be familiar with in a format that is approachable.
ReplyDelete