Book Description

Illus. in full color & full-color photos. "The story of Apollo II's historic flight, from lift-off, through 'The Eagle has landed,' to splashdown and quarantine. Donnelly does a good job of setting the stage with chapters on the history of the idea of flight to the moon, astronaut selection and training, and look at the flight's effect on people in general."--School Library Journal. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

From a third grade reader in Goodyear, AZ, May 18th, 2000.
Moonwalk, The First Trip to the Moon, by Judy Donnelly and Dennis Davidson, was based on the United States Space Program in it's attempt to out do the Russian program. The U. S. wanted to put 2 men on the moon and after numerous tries and a few fatalities the U. S. Space Program succeeded. Apollo 11 was the first rocket to land on the moon. I found this book very exciting. I learned much about how the space program worked and what it took to get to the moon and back again safely. I encourage other young readers to read Moonwalk. It will inspire many readers as it did me to study more about the future of space travel and our space program. ... Read more

Book Description

Tibaldo Bondi, son of the assistant to the great Florentine physician Turisanus, is supposed to celebrate his 12th birthday on October 10, 1582. But 1582 is no ordinary year. Inaccuracies in the calendar established under Julius Caesar have been piling up for over a millennium, the equinoxes are coming earlier and earlier in the year, and Easter is inexorably drifting out of traditional season. When Pope Gregory XII decrees a long-needed calendar reform, part of the correction involves dropping ten days from the year. Social upheaval ensues. Workers will lose ten days' wages, rent payments are due only twenty days apart, and Tibaldo's birthday is lost.

Determined to recover his birthday, quick-witted Tibaldo manages an audience with Pope Gregory and speaks his mind. This story cleverly weaves an enjoyable account of the cultural and scientific milieu of 16th century Italy. Through Tibaldo's eyes, we learn of contemporary medical skills as practiced by his sister, a midwife, and his father; from Tibaldo's schoolteachers we learn about Renaissance astronomy and other sciences: and of course we learn the basis of the Gregorian reform that led to the calendar we use, with just minor changes, to this day.

Beautifully illustrated with drawings that reflect the style of the era, Tibaldo and the Hole in the Calendar offers a fascinating look at the Renaissance period and a delightful tale that will entertain readers of all ages. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Author's statement about Tibaldo
Tibaldo and the Hole in the Calendar is a fictional story with a historically and scientifically correct setting. In 1582 Pope Gregory XIII proclaimed a reform of the calendar, including the omission of ten days--Oct. 5 through Oct. 14 of 1582-- to correct the inaccuracy of the Julian calendar. Tibaldo Bondi's twelfth birthday, on Oct. 10, 1582, would be omitted, to his distress. He imaginatively and courageously fought to recover his birthday, by asking help from his teachers and the governor of Bologna, and eventually from the Pope himself. The Pope was so amused (laughing for the first time in eight years!) by Tibaldo's daring and clever arguments that he issued a special decree restoring the celebration that would have been lost in 1582. This fictional decree is printed here in authentic papal Latin, but a translation is given. Tibaldo goes on to become a famous physician, pioneering in the use of the microscope and in preventive measures against the spread of infections. He also pioneers in the education of women, marrying a woman astronomer and ensuring that one of his daughters becomes a midwife, one a physician, and one an astronomer. As the background for the story much information is given about astronomy, medicine, midwifery, the history of the calendar, and the religious and political history of Italy. The book is printed in a Renaissance format and the beautiful etchings by Jonathan Shimony are in the style of Renaissance book illustration. The story and the factual background are accessible to children of age ten years or more but are also fascinating reading for adults. It is a particularly instructive and amusing book for a parent to read with a child. Tibaldo has been translated into French, Italian, German, Japanese, Chinese, Polish, and Greek, and is due to be translated into Spanish, Portuguese, and Hebrew. Tentative plans are underway to make a movie of it, to be set in Bologna, Italy.

A wonderful book for both children and adults
This book is really quite charming. It beautifully blends science, philosophy, history, and fiction into a format that is accessible to children and entertaining for adults. Highly recommended ... Read more

Book Description

When Andrew’s latest invention, the Atom Sucker, goes haywire, Andrew and Judy are shrunk down to microscopic level! Andrew and Judy find themselves lost on their neighbor’s dog, where they encounter everything from colossal fleas to crab-like eyelash mites. Now they have to find their way back to the Atom Sucker and get unshrunk before it’s too late!
... Read more

Reviews (1)

A great series
This book, as well as the others in the "Andrew Lost" series, is wonderful! I stumbled across it as a gift for my nephew, but decided to read it to my 6 & 8 year old sons. They loved it, and we have read the whole series. Andrew's adventures kept the boys interested and there was a whole lot of learning too. Because Andrew is shrunk to a level we don't normally see, we get an "up close" look at things thru his adventures. There is lots of science, like what the color of a bubble means and how an insect sees with its many eyes (and so much more!). The books are sufficiently "gross" to interest boys, but not so gross that I couldn't read them. In fact, I learned at least as much as they did. Really interesting stuff! The chapters are short and easy to read. We finished each book in 2-3 sittings. I highly recommend these books. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Amanda Bean's Amazing Dream: A Mathematical Story
This is one of a genre of books wherein the beauty and elegance of a mathematical concept is revealed to the main character in a dream (others notables inlude MATH CURSE by Jon Scieszka and THE NUMBER DEVIL by Hans Magnus Enzensberger). This book is a marvelous way to integrate literature with mathematics and I have found it useful to aid in the introduction of multiplication to students in my 3rd grade. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (9)

Great plot with cliffhanger chapter endings
My kids haven't enjoyed a book this much since Harry Potter.They want to know when the sequel is coming out!

Like Chinese Food, only the opposite
A very entertaining book.Thanks to the other reviewers because without their recommendations I wouldn't have gotten bought this book.You know what they say about Chinese food, how it is delicious and very filling but thirty minutes after you are done you are hungry again?Well, this book is the opposite.It is such an easy read and so fast paced that you go through it effortlessly and enjoy it a lot, but then hours, even days, later you find yourself still thinking about some of the ideas the book introduces and the complex but very satisfying plot (it ties up what you thought were loose ends beautifully).For example, the idea of nanorobots building a complex city from a single robot in the same way a human rises from a single fertilized egg is fascinating. I will definitely be looking for any future books that Richards writes to buy for my family.

Great Fun -- Highly Recommended!
As a former elementary and middle school teacher, I heard about this book and thought I would check it out.It is very easy to read, and once you start you can't stop.Although totally different than Harry Potter, it is similar in that adults will enjoy it as much as kids.The plot is very clever and there are a lot of fun twists and turns along the way.I also agree with the review by the Grandmother who wrote about the high quality of the book itself.It is a beautifully done edition that really stands out.Parents who get this book for their children will not be disappointed.

5 STARS FOR MY GRANDSON'S VERY FAVORITE BOOK
I often read books my 12 year old grandson thinks are good so we can discuss them.He begged me to read this one. From the beginning I was amazed at the high quality and good looks of this hardcover sized paperback. Everything aboutit is of the highest quality; the cover, the paper stock and the beautifully drawn vignettes at the beginning of each chapter.Five stars to the publisher for a beautiful product.
And five stars to Douglas Richards for writing a book kids will love, with lots of science that is even educational for Grandmothers. My grandson and I talked about the different chapters for a long time and I was really excited to see that he really understood the concepts while rushing on to the next chapter to see what was going to happen.When I told him I was going to write a review, he asked me to please ask the author to write another book about Ryan and Regan, so he can find out what happens next.

Prometheus Project: Trapped
I think that this was one of the best books I've ever read.It's so descriptive.The author uses colorful words and his imagination expands farther than this planet!I think the story was exciting because the two main characters were always doing something suspensful.I gave it to one of my friends to read and he loved it.He said it was one of the best books he's ever read too.I recommend this book to kids all around the world.If you're looking for a great suspensful book, this is the one to read!!!!! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Field Mouse leads a quiet, contented life in his burrow under an old bone. But one day he starts hearing strange scritching noises outside. Peering out, he sees people with shovels and picks digging gently in a nearby bluff. What's going on? Field Mouse scurries out to explore. Later, when he returns to his cozy home, he finds that his bone is gone! This intrepid little fellow sets out on a mission to reclaim his roof. His search leads him to a strange place called The Field Museum of Chicago, where, lonely and frightened, he scampers around, evading vacuum cleaners and scientists, and always seeking his beloved bone. Finally, one day, Field Mouse comes across the biggest Tyrannosaurus rex in the world, 67 million years old--and his bone! The determined homebody settles right in to his new quarters--right under the T-rex's toes!

A clever idea with a somewhat dull presentation, this story will certainly inspire flights of fancy and interest in the ever fascinating great dinosaurs. Based on the true story of the largest, most complete T-rex ever found, this version is given a fanciful treatment and original point of view by award-winning author Jan Wahl. Bob Doucet's illustrations utilize compelling perspectives, but are somewhat lackluster. Wahl has written more than 100 books for children, including The Singing Geese. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The Field Mouse and the Dinosaur Named Sue is 'Dino'mite!
While this is a fictional account of Sue, the story gives children a broad look at what's involved in putting together a dinosaur for a museum display. From the dig, to carefully cleaning the bones, and putting them together on display at the museum - all from a mouse's eyes. This is a delightful children's book for all ages! ... Read more

Book Description

Ms. Frizzle and the gang just want to study dinosaurs at the Museum of Natural History. By mistake, they end up traveling through time to the actual Mesozoic era and come face to face with real meat-eaters! ... Read more

Book Description

The whine of jet engines thunders from above as the giant Air Force bomber makes its approach to Westport Field. Suddenly, the citizens of Mammoth Falls are startled to see the bomb bay doors open and an object drop down, down, directly into Strawberry lake. Splash!

And what is that object? Why a bomb, what else? Not just a common, ordinary, conventional bomb, but an atomic bomb! That's just the beginning of the latest (actually the first) madcap adventure - book-length this time - of that outrageous, notorious threat to municipal sanity known as The Mad Scientists' Club. As you know, with these boys anything can happen, and it does! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Return fo Mammonth Falls...
Welcome to Mammonth Falls, where you can get a great hambuger for thirty-five cents and go fishing at Strawberry Lake. If you don't mind the Air Force scaring the fish away by dropping stuff into the lake. Like an atomic bomb!
Henry Mulligan and the Mad Scientist Club want to help the Air Force recover the object, but the government does not want their help. In fact, they don't want to even talk about it at first.
But the Air Force has to do something fast, because the longer the bomb is in the lake the worse things become. Reporters, angry housewives and pressure from higher ups are starting to really make things hot for Colonel March.
Will the Air Force turn to the Mad Scientist Club or will the Club have to handle the problem of the bomb on their own?
A great adventure and really allows the characters to use their brains AND still stay in character. This adventure shows you how the club was formed!

A dream come true
The magic of Brinley's Mad Scientists' Club is its combination of adolescent fantasy with the real world. Where else can a bunch of brainy small town kids become heroes not by stepping through a portal to some fantasy world but by knowing more about our world's natural laws than the adults who surround them? This novel works best as a prequel to the collections of tales found in Brinley's first two books, which are childhood favorites of mine. However, the story stands on its own, and its scope eclipses those earlier short stories. The Air Force has lost an atomic bomb in the town's Strawberry Lake, and only the Mad Scientists' ingenuity can save the day! At first this gang of adolescents can't get the grownups to listen, but they soon prove their worth. Likewise, I recommend that you give them a chance. They won't let you down.

Classic Adventure - for kids or adults
I'm so glad this is finally available.

I fondly remembered the Mad Scientist's Club stories which a teacher read to our fifth grade class in the early seventies. I soon bought the books for myself and read them several times over the years.

When my daughter was seven (just a couple of years ago) I read them to her and she (more accurately we) enjoyed them thoroughly. While browsing eBay one day I discovered there existed a "prequel" novel - The Big Kerplop - which was published in a very limited edition (1000 copies if I remember right).

I eventually obtained one at the "bargain" price of $$$ - by far the lowest price I found in 6 months of searching. I gave it to my daughter for Christmas (it's well cared for and stored safely) and read it to her over the next week.

Amazingly enough it surpasses the quality of the short stories and I felt it was worth every penny.

Now that it's available at one tenth what I paid for it I recommend it unreservedly. It's self contained and doesn't require familiarity with the other stories but I still recommend you read The Mad Scientist's Club and The New Adventures of The Mad Scientist's Club first so you can really savor The Big Kerplop. All high quality youth literature.

A real bomb!
This book is about a group of boys who formed the Mad Scientists' Club. It all started when Charlie, Jeff and Harmon went fishing in Strawberry Lake. I like this book because it's really funny and the boys in it do some secret agent work. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excited about reading!
I was very excited to find out about the Magic School Bus chapter books. I teach 2nd and 3rd grades and my students love this book! My 3rd graders are reading chapter books. This new series allows them to keep reading about Ms. Frizzle and her class. They are learning more Science facts and working on their reading skills. As a teacher I couldn't ask for more! ... Read more

Book Description

Robot City is in big trouble and it's going to take a few good robots to save it. Join Rodney, Bigweld, and the Rusties as they battle Ratchet and his evilmother, Madame Gasket, for control of the city.

Reviews (1)

i robot, you jane
It's a cog! It's a spring! No, it's a new book by Scout Driggs about Robots! Though short on science, reason, or sensibility I find that my three year-old cousin Rodrigo loves this book with an overwhelming passion. He carries it with him everywhere and begins to weep like a baby at the merest suggestion that he read anything else. Here's what he has to say: "INGREDIENT!" Which is a word he uses as a positive adjective. For the record, he also describes Santa Claus, chocolate ice cream and his Stegosaurus pajamas as "Ingredient." Scout Driggs, you are in fine company indeed. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

3 1/2* A Nice Book of Friction
The Magic School Bus is an excellent science-based book collection, in which the indomitable Ms. Frizzle (wonderfully voiced by Lily Tomlin on the animated TV show) takes her grammar school kids on "Fantastic Voyage" like journeys in a shrinking school bus. . The bus takes the kids inside a book about Physics, where they enter a page about a baseball field with no friction. The kids learn about how throwing, running, and catching would work were there no friction.

Generally, the books are funny, have recognizable characters, and teach science principles in a clear, imaginative way. This book, however, was not as good as others I've read in the series: there is minimal use of "miniaturization" that makes the other books so clever and unique, the focus on friction is a bit too narrow, and the usually exciting escape from danger is on the tepid side. Still, its 30 pages contain bad puns, demonstrations of friction, and two friction experiments and the never-frazzled Ms. Frizzle. It's a mildly entertaining and informative book.

Magic School Bus Plays Ball - a Book About Forces
I'm 8 years old, and I've read alot of Magic School Busbooks. This book explains all about friction, forces, pushing andpulling.The book takes place in a magic book where the kids play baseball with no friction. I liked this book because I play baseball, and it would be hard to play without friction. I think that this book is better than the one about bats, and I REALLY liked that one. This book was one of the best I've read, so I suggest this book for your children.Kids, ask your parents to buy this book. ... Read more

Book Description

A pop-can speedster illustrates the conversion of elastic potential energy to kinetic energy. An Operation game becomes a lesson on electronic circuits. Simple machines built with Lego kits demonstrate the principals of levers, gears, and pulleys. Is it fun, or is it science? It's both! Classroom-tested and developed with funding from the National Science Foundation, Teaching Energy with Toys helps instructors teach about mechanical energy and energy conversion with confidence and students' full attention. Using toys, games, and hands-on activities, the experiments in this jam-packed resource book convey complex science principals to young people more vividly and effectively than any textbook on the market. All toys can be inexpensively purchased or created by students with readily-available household materials. Each motivating lesson, which includes reproducible activities and integrated cross-curricular connections, is linked to the NSTA's National Standards for Science Education, and is perfectly suited for home or school instruction. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good Resource for Teachers of Science
Like the other books in the "TOYS" series from Terrific Science Press, this book is an excellent resource. Although the cover indicates an intended audience of grades 4-8, I think the most of the 21 activities could be used with high school students as well.

The book includes a 10-page section on pedagogical strategies that is specific to the content of the activities and that also includes a sample assessment rubric. There is also a 13-page content review that I found to be both clear and useful.

Each activity is clearly laid out with the following sections: time required, key science topics, student background (if required), national science education standards, additional process skills (for some activities), materials - for getting ready - for introducing the activity - for the procedure - for the extensions, safety and disposal, getting ready, introducing the activity, procedure, variations and extensions, explanation, assessment suggestions (for some activities), cross-curricular integration, suggestions for further reading, and handout masters for some of the activities.

Although I like this book, I found myself a bit frustrated as I tried to find the toys needed for some of the activities. I found some, but not others. Some items are easy; we can all find LEGO's. Other items are more difficult. I bought out the toy store's end of summer clearance stock on the Explorer Gun a few years back. This year, it took me a few nights searching the web to find a distributor. I gave the book 4-stars because of this problem; it might mean that not all of the activities will be useable. I put an asterisk after those activities requiring items I found difficult to locate. You may be luckier.

Activities: (1) What Makes It Go? (2) The Toy That Returns (3) How Much Energy (4) Exploring Energy with an Explorer Gun®* (5) Pop Can Speedster (6) Ladybug, Ladybug, Roll Away (7) Rubber Band Airplane (8) Slingshot Physics* (requires a Sling Thing™) (9) The Catapult Gun* (requires the Insect Gun®) (10) Loop-the-Loop Challenge* (requires a Darda® car) (11) Homemade Roller Coaster (12) Bounceability (13) The Energy Transformation Game* (requires the Guess Who® game) (14) Drop 'n' Popper (15) Apply Your Energy Knowledge (16) Doc Shock* (requires the Operation® game) (17) Make Your Own Motor (18) Chemical Energy Transformations (19) Simple Machines with LEGO® (20) Get it in Gear with a LEGO® Vehicle (21) Squish 'em, Squash 'em, Squoosh 'em* (requires the Grape Escape® game) ... Read more

Book Description

People have followed Mercury's path through twilit skies since ancient times,but only since Mariner 10 flew by in 1974 have we begun to unravel themysteries of the sun's closest neighbor. Impressive NASA photographs willtake you to a cratered world where days hot enough to melt lead and nightsat 300 degrees below zero last for almost three months.

Reviews (1)

It's Out of This World (from a brother Space Cadet)
A wonderful story that tells about space, with humerous pictures of folks from each place. With the planets in trouble (the sun's on the move) they need a solution that all can approve. But working together you know that they'll find the solution's at hand if they just use their mind. You will learn about planets, you'll learn about heat, you'll learn that this marvelous book can't be beat. The author has written with humor and zest, of all that he's written, I can't say which one's best. But one thing's for certain, and this I can tell, you should go buy this book, cause my brother is swell. ... Read more

Book Description

Join Rodney as he sets out to make a name for himself in the big city. Although he is only a young robot, Rodney's big heart and talent for inventing should make him a huge success.

Unfortunately, Robot City no longer values young talent. Instead, the greedy and powerful robot Ratchet is using the city as his own personal junkyard. Will Rodney be able to save the robot metropolis from Ratchet's evil plans?

Book Description

Build your own robot model of Rodney Copperbottom. Just POP out the pieces and SNAP them together.

Being an inventor was never so easy.

Press out and play -- no glue or scissors necessary!

Book Description

The lively imagination of Caldecott medalist David Wiesner forecasts astounding goings-on for a Tuesday in the not too distant future -- an occurrence of gigantic vegetal proportions. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Giant veggies! Aaah!
This is a great idea for a story that worked quite well. The pictures are lovely to look at too. I loved the ending. There are so many children's books out there of varying quality, so I was pleased to come across this little gem.

Artichokes Advance on Anchorage.....
It all started in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey on May 11, 1999. Holly Evans launched her science experiment, flats of vegetable seedlings carried up into the ionosphere by weather balloons, to study "the effects of extra-terrestrial conditions on vegetable growth and development." Fast forward to June 29. All over the country, enormous vegetables are seen floating to earth. "Cucumbers circle Kalamazoo. Lima bearns loom over Levittown. Artichokes advance on Anchorage. Parsnips pass by Providence. And broccoli lands with a big bounce in Holly Evans's backyard." But when "arugula covers Ashtabula" , Holly begins to wonder about this veggie phenomenon. Arugula was not a part of her experiment..... David Wiesner's makes June 29th an unforgettable day in his entertaining classic, and imaginations will soar with each delightful page turn. His minimal text, with its witty, dead-pan delivery, is filled with clever wordplay and alliteration. But it's Mr Wiesner's marvelous illustrations that really make this book stand out and sparkle, and youngsters will enjoy lingering over each outrageously detailed and humorous picture. With an inventive twist at the end to bring the whole story to its logical, though fantastic, conclusion, June 29, 1999 is a masterpiece you and your family don't want to miss.

beautiful story with a fun twist!
The date may have past, but "June 29, 1999" remains a wonderful children's classic!! About a month before the day of the book's title, Young Holly Evans began a special science project. Using weather balloons, she had launched a number of different plants and vegetables in flat boxes into the ionosphere to study their growth. However, on June 29th, a most mysterious event occurred... GIGANTIC vegetables descended from the sky all over the country!! A hiker in the Rocky Mountains discovers turnips the size of houses and "cucumbers circle Kalamazoo".

As they slowly float to the ground (well, the red peppers need some help for some unknown reason), news reports come in from all over the country: gigantic parsnips in Providence, lima beans in Levittown, and arugula in Ashtabula. Wait a second!! Holly is puzzled; she didn't USE arugula as part of her experiment!! What's going on here?? If the arugula, the eggplants and the avocados are NOT part of her experiment, where did they come from??

David Weisner is the author of the Caldecott winning book, "Tuesday" in which frogs on their lily pads suddenly take flight one summer night. His delightful sense of the strange is continued here in "June 29". Like all of his books, the illustrations are lush and meticulously detailed, the reader feels like they could easily walk right into the pictures and be part of the action. The story is short, easy to read, and uses a lot of alliteration, so it can easily graft itself into a language arts lesson.

The story has some wonderfully fun visual jokes that older readers and adults will find fun, for example giant gourds being used as housing in North Carolina and The Big Apple being renamed to The Big Rutabaga (a giant purple rutabaga parades down the streets of New York to a blizzard of ticker tape and streamers). The book does have a wonderful surprise ending that I shall not give away here but will delight readers on the last page or two. If you're a fan of "Tuesday" or merely love an unusual story, you must pick up a copy of "June 29, 1999"!!

Science projects falling from the sky?
By April, most of the children in my kindergarten knew that they had learned absolutely everything about David Wiesner's "Tuesday". I surprised them one Tuesday, with this book, and let them know it was by the same author. "Will there be frogs?" the children clamored. We shared the book, and with growing excitement some of the children exclaimed as we turned the page and I read the date, "That's your birthday! Did Mr. David, the author know that? Did he put it there 'cuz he knows you love frogs and his Tuesday book?"
I must confess, I do not know how the author chose that date to evaluate plants.
This book was a hit in my classroom, a treasured favorite, even though it was a bit beyond K level scientific data collections. We planted seeds, and of course, the children adored the ending, which i shall not give away. We did many extension activities such as veggie trays and a big salad day. Bring this book to your classroom, or your home, and celebrate an oft ignored part of the food pyramid.

June 29, 1999 is awesomely funny!
Just because the date is gone, done give this book a pass. Holly Evans has a great science project with unbelievable results. I read June 29, 1999 on that date because it begged me to do so & what an amazing visual adventure it turned out to be! This otherworldy story will be with us for a long time. I encourage you to read it - it'll change your point of view about vegetables! .................. ... Read more