Volcanoes and Earthquakes. The Earth in Motion

by Mack Van Gageldonk, Mack Van Gageldonk (Illustrator)

Overview

Go on a journey to the center of our planet and discover how the earth moves! With breathtaking photography, illustrations and amazing facts, you will learn all there is to know about volcanoes and earthquakes.  

Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are among the most impressive natural phenomena. They’re both terrifying and breathtaking. With their gigantic power, they can shake the earth, rip it open, and make it tremble. Some earthquakes even create devastating tsunamis that level entire villages. And when a super volcano erupts, the entire world feels it . . .

Fourth book in the Wow! series, full of inspiring animals, plants, and phenomena that are so spectacular you’ll be left in awe!  For scientists ages 6 years and up.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781605378558
Publisher:	Clavis
Publication date:	04/11/2023
Series:	Wow! , #4
Pages:	72
Product dimensions:	9.84(w) x 10.20(h) x (d)
Lexile:	900L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 10 Years

About the Author

Mack (1960, the Netherlands) is a graphic designer and illustrator from The Netherlands. He was educated at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. During his education, he made funny and educational cartoons about, among others, penguins and whales. These cartoons were later bought by the 'Diergaarde Blijdorp'-zoo in Rotterdam. By now Mack is a regular illustrator at this animal park and he is the author of several children's books, in which animals often are the lead characters. Mack has a primitive way of drawing. He gets inspired by African art and the paintings of the Australian aboriginals. Both create immense power by simplifying shapes. Mack wants to combine that powerful simplification with a subtle sense of humor.

Editorial Reviews

"This fourth book in the Wow! series presents a fascinating look at our planet in "motion" via the movements of volcanoes and earthquakes, offering engaging visuals and educating readers of the interconnectedness of these systems. The author provides an introduction to the various types of volcanoes, eruptions, and geological movements using vivid photography and detailed illustrations set alongside facts which entice readers to want to learn more. Readers gain a sense of how volcanoes and earthquakes are related, extending into mud volcanoes, tsunamis, and the ring of fire, including additional details about the movements of the Earth along that particular region. The author includes an index to guide readers to main points within the text and highlights important vocabulary throughout. The primary focus is on volcanos, with information on earthquakes and the relationship between the two included to link the two phenomena together. Inquisitive readers will be drawn to the cover and photographs as well as the approachable presentation of the information. Overall, this title represents a solid introductory text." - School Library Connection

From the Publisher

2023-01-25
A portrait gallery of erupting clouds and huge showers of magma distinguish this imported overview, originally published in Dutch.

The photos—several punched up with sprays or flecks of red added by the artist—are eye-catching…but not appealing enough to compensate for the jumble of confusing, contradictory, or incorrect claims that accompany them. Some of the bobbles may just be translation errors, such as referring to a graphic image as a “photo” on one page and elsewhere dubbing ice columns in an Icelandic lava tunnel “the façade of a fairytale.” But the assertion that the “hotspot” under the Canary Islands is not on a fault line, coming as it does shortly after the author indicates in both text and diagrams that faults are where volcanoes form, will leave readers confused. They’ll also be perplexed by the statement that flamingos eat out of Tanzania’s Lake Natron, even though it’s described as being too hot and salty for any life to survive, and by a startling line about “some species [of animals] that seek out the toxins of volcanic activity,” which van Gageldonk fails to unpack. There’s an overall lack of balance, too, as the topic doesn’t switch to earthquakes until the last five spreads, which include one that is just a section title and another actually devoted to tsunamis.

A damp squib with too many fault lines. (index) (Nonfiction. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews