It's a Round, Round World!

by Ellie Peterson, Ellie Peterson (Illustrator)

Overview

We all know the earth is round. But HOW do we know? Join intrepid young scientist-adventurer Joulia Copernicus in this engaging picture book as she takes readers on a STEM historical journey through time and space.

What would happen if you tried to walk tothe edge of the earth? Would you find it? Joulia Copernicus explores these questions and more in this fun and informative book for young readers, the first in the Joulia Copernicus series. From jumping on board Christopher Columbus’s ship, to planet-hopping in the outer reaches of our solar system, Joulia explains he ins and outs of how we learned that the earth is round with humor and wit. Ellie Peterson's clear, concise language and bold, kid-friendly make this book ideal for kids interested in science, history, and the world around us.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781635921281
Publisher:	Astra Publishing House
Publication date:	09/03/2019
Series:	A Joulia Copernicus Book
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	9.63(w) x 12.31(h) x 0.34(d)
Lexile:	650L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 10 Years

About the Author

Ellie Peterson is a middle school science teacher by day, author and artist by night (and any time when doodling can occur). She is inspired to teach readers to question how they know what they know. She works in watercolors, colored pencils, fine pens, pastels, and digitally.

Editorial Reviews

A Junior Library Guild Selection

★ "An amusing, thought-provoking presentation in which observations and reason lead to a sound conclusion."—Booklist, starred review
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"This lighthearted addition to the STEM shelf encourages children to question, hypothesize, experiment, and observe."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2019-06-16
In a confident first-person narrative, young scientist Joulia Copernicus debunks the story that Columbus "proved Earth is round."

Informing readers that Columbus knew this fact, and so did most people of his time, Joulia also points out that "Ancient Greek, Islamic, and Indian scholars theorized that Earth was round WAY before Columbus's time." Confident Joulia explains how Columbus, shown as a haughty captain in the humorous, cartoon illustrations, and his fellow mariners confirmed Earth was round by discerning "that when ships sail away from you, they seem to disappear from the bottom. When they sail toward you, they appear from the top. On a flat Earth, you'd see the entire ship the entire time." The accompanying illustrations, almost like animation cels, provide the visuals readers need to confirm these assertions. Joulia also turns to astronomy. A lunar eclipse is the highlight of a double-page spread with a large yellow sun, a personified blue and green Earth wearing sunglasses, and the moon moving in iterations through the Earth's shadow. This shows readers that the Earth's shadow is "ROUND!" Joulia has straight, brown hair and pale skin and is almost always the only human in any given illustration. It's great to see a young woman scientist, but it's too bad there's not more diversity around her. Two experiments stimulate further exploration.

This lighthearted addition to the STEM shelf encourages children to question, hypothesize, experiment, and observe. (Informational picture book. 6-9)

Kirkus Reviews