A Journey through the Digestive System with Max Axiom, Super Scientist

by Emily Sohn, Cynthia Martin (Illustrator), Barbara Schulz (Illustrator)

Overview

In graphic novel format, follows the adventures of Max Axiom as he explains the science behind the human digestive system.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781429634526
Publisher:	Capstone
Publication date:	01/01/2009
Series:	Graphic Science Series
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	6.70(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.10(d)
Age Range:	8 - 14 Years

About the Author

Emily Sohn is a freelance journalist in Minneapolis, who covers mostly health, science, environment and adventure for both kids and grown-ups. Among other publications, her work has appeared in U.S. News & World Report, the Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian, Backpacker and Science News for Kids, and she is a contributing writer for Discovery News. Assignments have taken Emily to exotic locations around the globe, including Cuba, Fiji and the Peruvian Amazon.

Table of Contents

Getting hungry — Taking the plunge — Soak it in and let it out — Why we eat.

Editorial Reviews

I’m in love – or, better yet, my son is in love! We’ve had the opportunity to review graphic science books on all sorts of topics that are fun and easy to read. Comic book style science sounds really fluffy doesn’t it? Believe it or not, the Max Axiom series is full of “real” science that goes deep enough to be appropriate for any upper elementary/early middle school child. My son is a less-than-zealous textbook reader. (Picture eyes glazing over and giant yawns.) After reading – or being read to – from a textbook, he recalls very little of the information. Over the years, I’ve turned science into hands-on unit studies and supplemented with lots of library books, which has worked quite well. During one of these unit study times, I came across Max Axiom and wanted to know more. I found that Capstone Press offers many, many Max Axiom books, and boy were my son and I excited! Twenty-four books total cover the areas of biology/botany, chemistry, physical and earth science. In each book, Max Axiom (a scientist with super powers), goes on an adventure to learn all about the topic at hand. He can shrink to the size of bacteria and whiz through the human body, or go back in time to learn more about a famous scientist of the past. All of this in a 32 page comic book! (When I say comic book, don’t think of flimsy pages, these are “real” books.) http://thecurriculumchoice.com/2011/07/max-axiom-graphic-science-books/

Curriculum Choice blog

There are lots of engaging resources available for teaching science to young kids, but one of the best is strangely little known: a terrific and highly entertaining series of science-themed graphic novels from Capstone Press, featuring a super scientist by the name of Max Axiom. Max Axiom, the story goes, was hiking one day when he was struck by megacharged lightning. The accident gave him the ability to shrink to the size of the atom, while his magic lab coat enables him to travel through space and time. These super powers mean that when he is, for instance, investigating viruses, he can stand on a human knee and watch as a scrape becomes infected. He can travel down inside a plant to show the role of chloroplasts in photosynthesis. Each book in the series features an adventure focused on one science theme, such as Cell Life, Chemical Reactions, or Electricity. Information is presented clearly and engagingly, and each book also features a glossary, suggestions for further reading, and pre-screened internet links. There are more than 15 books in the series altogether. Unfortunately, the Brooklyn Public Library and New York Public Library each only carry one of these well-designed books, but you can purchase four for the price of three on Amazon. http://www.examiner.com/homeschooling-in-new-york/max-axiom-graphic-novels-make-learning-science-fun

Examiner.com

The graphic novel presentation of A Journey Through the Digestive System with Max Axiom, Super Scientist is even better than a Magic School Bus visit. Like the bus, Max can shrink down to the size of an atom. His ever-present sunglasses give him x-ray vision; his lab coat allows for travel through time and space. Thanks to his super intelligence and a mega-charged lightning bolt, Max has degrees in every field of science and incredibly energy, making him a Super Scientist. In this adventure, Max kills time while waiting for his lunch order by shrinking small enough to ride a hamburger bite through the digestive system of a nearby patron. Max explains his way through the system, supplying information at every stop along with a dose of humor. Additional facts and resources are appended.

Library Sparks