I am not usually a baseball fan or science fan, but some times things happen within a book to change that. And while Science, Matter and the Baseball Park did not make me want to run and join a baseball team or get season tickets to the local science museum, it did make me go, “well now. Ain’t that a bat to the noggin.” (But in a good way.)
Catherine Ciocchi, Burgen Thorne and Chantelle Thorne made a book that brings the theme of Matter into a way that is more accessible than a boring “just the facts” type of book. The use of baseball takes something we are mostly familiar with, and uses it to describe the concept of Matter. What it is, how it works, and so forth. Rhyming text that mostly hustles along the page, we see how solid, liquid or gas elements make up everything from ballparks to us. The text is complemented by mostly easy to understand and view images. The colors and imagery are not overwhelming, nor are they muted. They are sweet, and innocent, meant to look as if you could grab them off the page like a preschool-wobble toy. But not cartoon or childish.
While currently available, I did read this via an online reader copy.
And if you do like the art by the Thornes you could try Finley: A Moose on the Caboose by Candace Spizzirri. The story is a social theme book, with the idea that sometimes we need to change unfair rules and allow everyone to find their place, even if they are a wild animal who is, by the rules, not allowed on the train. It is cute, but maybe a bit more modern than I usually like, but it is a sweet story. (Also currently available and read via an online reader copy.)
Title Peanuts, Cracker Jack, pop flies . . . and physics? , comes from the Booklist (09/08/2023): review.