Here are three brand-new works of nonfiction. All are books I gathered at the recent American Library Association conference, where I met two of the enthusiastic authors. I shared these books this month on Good Day Alabama on WBRC Fox 6.
There are (No) Stupid Questions … in Science Written and illustrated by Leah Elson
In this brand-new book, Leah Elson, who has been obsessed with the sciences since childhood, draws upon her wildly popular web series, 60 Seconds of Science, where she explains the answers to readers’ questions within 60 seconds. In her irreverent debut book, she addresses more than 60 scientific topics—from the serious to the ridiculous—that have been posed by her fans from around the world. Things like: “Why do we age?” and “If humans come from monkeys, why are there still monkeys around?” and “Why isn’t Pluto a planet anymore?” and “Are there more colors than ROYGBIV?” and “What the hell is dark matter?” and “Is it possible to clone a wooly mammoth?” Readers might be reminded of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson and The Complete Manual of Things That Might Kill You: A Guide to Self-Diagnosis for Hypochondriacs by Jen Bilik. In any case, There Are (No) Stupid Questions … In Science provides easy-to-understand, cheeky explanations for a bunch of scientific and medical dilemmas. Those with no prior scientific knowledge as well as experts in the scientific field will find the book delightfully fun and full of clever cocktail-party conversation starters.
The Miracle Seed By Martin Lemelman
This graphic novel for young readers—and history lovers of all ages—tells the true story of an ancient and extinct plant reborn in the modern era thanks to the work of two female scientists. When I met the author, Martin Lemelman, he was giddy with happiness at having this story in print—and he was handing out the most delicious dried dates. It was an appropriate snack—the book is about the rebirth of the Judean date palm. Thousands of years ago, the Jewish people fought against their Roman rulers. The people in the mountaintop fortress of Masada fought bravely but the 967 men, women and children could not hold off an army of 10,000 Roman soldiers. The Emperor Titus ordered the destruction of everything precious to the Jews: their villages, their belongings and even their beloved Judean date palm trees. Centuries passed. The Jewish people were scattered, and the Judean date palm died out. Then in 1963, a team of archaeologists uncovered 2,000-year-old date palm seeds at the Masada site. Another 40 years passed until, in 2004 Israeli scientist Dr. Sarah Sallon decided to try to grow plants from the ancient seeds. After years of work, she and her friend Dr. Elaine Solowey brought the Judean date palm back to life. With lovely and detailed artwork, Lemelman weaves a true story of history, science and faith. It is a captivating and hopeful look at perseverance and survival in the face of impossible odds.
Schoolhouse Rock! The Updated Official Guide By Tom Yohe and George Newall
Remember “Conjunction Junction, what’s your function” or “I’m Just a Bill” or “My Hero, Zero”? I still can remember the tunes—and the lessons. The creators of Schoolhouse Rock! bring us a blast from the lesson-filled past with a revised and updated edition of the bestselling adult book, Schoolhouse Rock! The Official Guide—timed to the 50th anniversary of the premiere. A little backstory: George Newall was an executive at an advertising agency when he was asked to set the multiplication tables to music. Fellow advertising man Tom Yohe created the visuals. Schoolhouse Rock, the program, informed and entertained a generation of kids on Saturday mornings from 1973 to 1985, and you still can find the videos on YouTube. Millions of us learned the fundamentals of math, grammar, science, civics and history. Catchy tunes taught the planets of our solar system with “Interplanet Janet” and how to turn an adjective into a perfectly good adverb in “Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here.” And many of us even memorized the Preamble to the Constitution thanks to this program. Schoolhouse Rock! The Updated Official Guide includes all the lyrics we used to know by heart as well as memorable moments from the original segments and the later segments such as: “Three Is a Magic Number,” “Figure Eight,” “A Victim of Gravity,” “Dollars and Sense,” “Tyrannosaurus Debt” and “Interjections!” Also, this book features lots of facts and behind-the-scenes trivia about this beloved pop-culture sensation.
I link to Amazon to show you exactly what book I’m talking about, but I love to shop locally at Church Street Coffee and Books, The Alabama Booksmith, Little Professor, and Thank You Books in Crestwood. And I visit my local library often in person and online!
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