Newton and Curie Take Flight!: A Picture Book

by Daniel Kirk

Overview

The intrepid science squirrels are back in the full-color picture book Newton and Curie Take Flight!, a fun adventure from the bestselling creator behind Library Mouse.

When curious squirrel Curie notices a baby bird learning to fly for the first time, she can’t wait to try too! But everyone tells her that squirrels can’t fly. Determined, Curie decides to conduct her own experiment with the help of her big brother, Newton. Can they find a way to soar in the sky?

Gently exploring the science of flight with simple, kid-friendly explanations of topics including gravity, air currents, air pressure, and lift, this light introduction to the principles of STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) from bestselling author-illustrator Daniel Kirk depicts an inquisitive and resourceful sibling team who solve real-life problems together—and have a lot of fun along the way!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781419749636
Publisher:	Abrams Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	08/01/2023
Series:	Newton and Curie
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.70(w) x 10.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Daniel Kirk has written and illustrated a number of popular and bestselling books for children, including Library Mouse, which Booklist praised as a “show-stopper.” He is also the author and illustrator of Library Mouse: A Friend’s Tale and the novels ElfRealm: The Low Road and Elf Realm: The High Road. He lives in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, with his family.

Editorial Reviews

"The STEM concepts are effectively elucidated in the narrative and further expanded on in the backmatter . . . Science could hardly have cuter advocates. A clear, appealing blend of science and sibling strategizing."

Kirkus

"The STEM concepts are effectively elucidated in the narrative and further expanded on in the backmatter . . . Science could hardly have cuter advocates. A clear, appealing blend of science and sibling strategizing."—Kirkus

From the Publisher

2023-05-24
The dream of flight knows no boundary.

When young Curie the squirrel encounters baby robins in faltering flight, she wants to learn to fly herself. For her first, failed, experiment she creates makeshift wings out of found feathers. A good scientist, Curie then observes children from a nearby school playing on a trampoline and decides to take flight by bouncing on a mushroom; she uses sticks to record how high she leaps but concludes that jumping is not flying. She and her big brother, Newton, hypothesize together, realizing that they need lift from air as well as energy. Seeing the kids fly a paper airplane spurs the pair to try further experiments as they—and readers alongside them—learn about air pressure, lift, and airflow. After constructing a glider, they build a gravity-defying catapult to launch it and then a better, slingshotlike, launching catapult. Subsequent experiments allow the scientifically minded squirrels to learn and improve their results. The STEM concepts are effectively elucidated in the narrative and further expanded on in the backmatter. The anthropomorphized squirrels wear clothes and have hands to replace paws but are recognizably rodents. As in their first foray into physics, Newton and Curie (2020), they are slightly softer cousins of the characters in Kirk’s Library Mouse (2007). Science could hardly have cuter advocates. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A clear, appealing blend of science and sibling strategizing. (glossary, websites) (Picture book. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews