Charles Darwin's Around-the-World Adventure: A Picture Book

by Jennifer Thermes

Overview

Complete with mesmerizing map work that charts Darwin’s thrilling five-year voyage, as well as “Fun Facts” and more, author/illustrator Jennifer Thermes’s picture book biography Charles Darwin’s Around-the-World Adventure captures the beauty and mystery of nature with wide-eyed wonder.

In 1831, Charles Darwin embarked on his first voyage. Though he was a scientist by profession, he was an explorer at heart. While journeying around South America for the first time aboard a 90-foot-long ship named the Beagle, Charles collected insects, dug up bones, galloped with gauchos, encountered volcanoes and earthquakes, and even ate armadillo for breakfast! The discoveries he made during this adventure would later inspire ideas that changed how we see the world.

“A notable choice for both STEM curricula and family sharing.” —Kirkus Reviews

“A colorful, childlike presentation of Darwin’s eye-opening voyage of discovery.” —Booklist

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781419721205
Publisher:	Abrams Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	10/04/2016
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	316,392
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 10.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	5 - 7 Years

About the Author

Jennifer Thermes is a map illustrator and the author-illustrator of books for children, including Manhattan, Charles Darwin’s Around-the-World Adventure,and Grandma Gatewood Hikes the Appalachian Trail. She lives in Connecticut.

Editorial Reviews

08/15/2016
Letting her background in map illustration shine, Thermes (Little Author in the Big Woods) follows the travels of Charles Darwin while concisely explaining the influence they had on his growing understanding of the interconnectedness of nature. As Darwin sails from England to the South American coast and the Galápagos Islands, Thermes’s neatly outlined pencil-and-watercolor images mix full-bleed scenes of bounteous wildlife with maps of the corresponding landscapes, labeling towns, geographic features, and local animals. A boyish enthusiasm is frequently apparent in Thermes’s portraits of the young scientist at work, even when seasickness was getting the best of him (“The landscape was so different from anything Charles had known in England,” she writes. “He was giddy”). Substantial back matter includes an in-depth look at Darwin’s later life and research, as well as a spread of 18 additional facts tied to his journey. Ages 5–7. Agent: Marietta Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"A colorful, childlike presentation of Darwin’s eye-opening voyage of discovery."

Booklist

"Cartophiles and observers of human nature alike will enjoy this book."

School Library Connection

"A notable choice for both STEM curricula and family sharing."—Kirkus

"A colorful, childlike presentation of Darwin’s eye-opening voyage of discovery."—Booklist

"Cartophiles and observers of human nature alike will enjoy this book."—School Library Connection

From the Publisher

"A colorful, childlike presentation of Darwin’s eye-opening voyage of discovery."

Booklist

10/01/2016
K-Gr 3—Thermes traces the route of the 1831 voyage of the HMS Beagle in this picture book biography of Charles Darwin. The focus of the story is on Darwin's wonder and delight as he observed and collected animals, plants, stones, and fossils on his five-year journey around the world. The endpapers feature maps of the departure and return (details of which will be obscured by the book jacket covers used in many libraries). Friendly watercolor and pencil illustrations portray the creatures and objects that fascinated Darwin. However, the art does not always line up with the text. In one spread, a tiny Darwin is highlighted on the deck of the HMS Beagle, yet a page turn shows him under a tree in the rain forest. (A few pages later, we learn that he was seasick and "happy to stay on land and explore.") In another spread, a dramatic moment in which his small boat is almost capsized by a calving glacier is paired with a map of the crew's route around Tierra del Fuego. Young readers unfamiliar with the naturalist's work may be puzzled by the ending: "And what he wrote would change the world forever." Back matter has a brief explanation of evolution. VERDICT An additional purchase for elementary school science collections.—Jennifer Costa, Cambridge Public Library, MA

School Library Journal

2016-07-02
This introduction to Darwin focuses on his five-year exploratory journey on the HMS Beagle. Young Charles loves searching for insects, birds, rocks, and bones, and he also loves sorting his treasures. After finishing school at Cambridge, he’s recommended by his botany professor as naturalist for the Beagle’s mapmaking mission around South America. Collecting specimens and recording “big observations about the tiniest of creatures” in his journal, Charles often remains behind to explore while the Beagle sails the coastline. The forthright narrative highlights Charles’ coming-of-age as a young man and scientist. In Tierra del Fuego, he observes the food chain: “The bigger animals couldn’t survive without eating the smaller ones. Charles saw how their lives were all connected.” Exploring the Andes, Charles’ speculations about the effects of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis are proven when he finds seashells embedded in high-elevation rocks. Thermes’ pencil-and-watercolor maps and illustrations are charming, accessible, and idealized. Charles resembles a boy throughout, save for his long sideburns. Some spreads group many species together in tableaux designed for browsing rather than scientific exactitude. The famous Galápagos Islands stopover gets special attention, and a cross section of the departing Beagle shows tortoises—for eating—in the hold. Endpapers map the global journey and include a timeline, some of which is hidden behind the front flap. A notable choice for both STEM curricula and family sharing. (notes, sources, further reading, “fun facts”) (Informational picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews