STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. The push to encourage, interest and educate students in these fields has been ongoing for years.
The idea goes beyond being an expert in one or all of those fields, it also teaches kids how to look at the world and solve problems. It can be very useful to help kids understand the bigger picture and open their minds to the fascinating world of STEM by reading books that help them do just that, like the books reviewed today.
Take a look for yourself; I think you’ll agree.
Books to borrow
The following book is available at many public libraries.
“The Secret of the Yellow Death: A True Story of Medical Sleuthing” by Suzanne Jurmain, photographs various credits, Houghton Mifflin, 104 pages
Read aloud: age 10 and older.
Read yourself: age 10 – 11 and older.
First there is a bone-freezing chill, a crushing headache and a stomach twisted in pain. This is quickly followed by a boiling hot fever, skin and the whites of the eyes that turn yellow. Streams of vomit black with digested clots of blood occur over and over. The victim of this terrible disease called yellow fever will, in all likelihood, be dead in days.
The trail of misery and death had been occurring for a long time.
“The fever struck the rich. It struck the poor. It killed the humble, and it humbled the important.”
It was widely known that yellow fever killed, but doctors and scientists were unable to combat the disease because they didn’t know what caused it.
Here is the true story of how four Americans and one Cuban tracked down one of the world’s most vicious killers — yellow fever. Expertly researched and written, this astonishing story is a must-read.
Librarian’s choice
Library: Northwest Branch Library, 901 Schuylkill Ave., Reading
Executive library director: Melissa Adams
Choices this week: “Beautiful Minecraft” by James Delaney; “What Do You See When You Look at a Tree?” by Emma Carlisle; “Amazing Mysteries of the World” by Catherine O’Neill; “Atlas of Dogs” by Francis Evans
Books to buy
The following books are available at favorite bookstores.
“So You Want to Be a Frog” by Jane Porter, illustrated by Neil Clark, Candlewick, 2023, 32 pages, $18.99 hardcover
Read aloud: age 5 – 9.
Read yourself: age 6 – 9.
Maybe you’ve wondered about what life would be like if you were a frog. Well, Fabio Frog cordially invites you to join Frog Club to see if you have what it takes by coaching you on many of the special skills required to being a frog.
For example, frogs have very long tongues which help them to catch their meals.
“If you were a frog, your tongue could reach your belly button!”
Try and see how far you can stick out your tongue. Hmm, maybe more practice is in order. And do you like to eat slugs and flies? That’s what frogs prefer! And if you were a frog, you would shed your skin about once a week and then eat it. Are you up to the task?
Through these and other true facts, “So You Want to Be a Frog” teaches kids a great deal about frogs in a thoroughly engaging, funny way.
“Santiago Saw Things Differently: Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Artist, Doctor, Father of Neuroscience” by Christine Iverson, illustrated by Luciano Lozano, mit Kids Press, 2023, 40 pages, $18.99 hardcover
Read aloud: age 5 – 9.
Read yourself: age 7 – 9.
When Santiago was a young boy, he would tinker with things and make them into music and games. When he was 8, Santiago began to draw, but his father said he didn’t have a talent for it and told him he must put his art supplies away and study to one day become a doctor. Santiago did as his father demanded but kept drawing in secret.
Eventually, Santiago became a professor of anatomy in Valencia, Spain. He began working with other scientists who were trying to understand how people’s brains worked. Where the other scientists saw a tangled mess of nerve fibers in the human brain, Santiago saw things differently, as he always had.
Using his artistic talent and inquisitive mind, he made thousands of scientific drawings that “enabled other scientists and doctors to find new ways to help people learn and heal.”
Because Santiago saw things differently and helped the world understand the nervous system, he became known as the Father of Neuroscience.
Sensitively told and illustrated, “Santiago Saw Things Differently: Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Artist, Doctor, Father of Neuroscience” is a fascinating and inspiring story of an incredible man who used his talents to change the world.
Nationally syndicated, Kendal Rautzhan writes and lectures on children’s literature. She can be reached at kendal.rautzhan27@gmail.com.
Source: Berkshire mont
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