Engineered! Engineering Design at Work, by Shannon Hunt/Illustrated by James Gulliver Hancock, (Sept. 2017, Kids Can Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781771385602
Recommended for readers 9-13
Nine engineering specialties -Aerospace Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Geomatics Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Environmental Engineering – in this look at engineering design, which introduces readers to the step-by-step process by using eye-catching icons and nine case studies, one for each field. Team member bios that introduce kids to new scientists and what they do; new fields of engineering, like geomatics, are explained and illustrated, as are new technologies, like the incorporation of 3-D printing into biomedical engineering. Cartoony illustrations make the science more appealing to anyone who may think they can’t *do* science. Kids will learn that engineering can be found everywhere, from sending the rover to Mars, to saving animals from extinction, to replacing a sewer system to clear pollution from a lake. A glossary helps with new engineering terms readers come across.
Engineered! is a fun introduction to the basics of engineering and can be used equally in a science class, makerspace, or on career day.
See What We Eat! A First Book of Healthy Eating, by Scot Ritchie, (Sept. 2017, Kids Can Press), $16.99, ISBN: 9781771386180
Recommended for readers 5-8
A group of friends takes a trip to a farm, run by one girl’s aunt. They’re there for pick apples and make an apple crisp for the potluck harvest dinner. Yulee’s aunt takes them on a tour of the farm, teaching the kids about growing grains and vegetables, getting enough nutrients, dairy, and protein – and addresses food allergies and alternative methods of getting those nutrients. Kids learn about transporting food to farmer’s market, stores, and all over the world. Ritchie addresses composting and recycling, and includes a tasty Harvest Apple Crisp recipe to try. A glossary helps readers with new words like pasteurize, carbohydrate, and nutrient.
The illustrations are soft, cartoony realistic, with a multicultural group of friends coming together to learn and eat. The room where the Harvest Celebration takes place has a line of hanging global flags as the families dine on pierogies, tamales, and apple crisp. With bolded facts and questions to encourage deeper thinking, this is a fun introduction for younger learners to nutrition and sustainability.
When Planet Earth Was New, by James Gladstone/Illustrated by Katherine Diemert, (Sept. 2017, OwlKids Books), $18.95, ISBN: 9781771472036
Mom Read It 