Who here likes completely serious and scientific answers to weird and crazy hypothetical questions? Who here also likes comics? For those of you who like both (like me) What If? by Randall Munroe, a cartoonist and former roboticist at NASA, is the book for you! The book explores several questions submitted to Munroe’s website and gives the hilarious answers to each. For example: ‘What would happen if everyone on Earth stood as close to each other as they could and jumped, everyone landing on the ground at the same instant?’ Here’s some more – ‘From what height would you need to drop a steak for it to be cooked when it hit the ground?’ ‘What would happen if you made a periodic table out of cube-shaped bricks, where each brick was made of the corresponding element?’ ‘How many Lego bricks would it take to build a bridge capable of carrying traffic from London to New York?’ There are comics to go with each question, depicting scenes that help explain the answer or elaborate on it. The answers come with footnotes, many of which are amusing comments. And there are sections for some of the questions that got submitted but weren’t answered – specifically, the extra weird and super bizarre ones. (Obviously, there are comics to go with that, too.) This book is such a great one in part because the author takes these questions seriously. He actually writes logical answers to them in full detail and doesn’t just dismiss them as silly, harebrained kid questions like a lot of adults would do. What If? makes topics such as physics and math as interesting as possible and very funny. For the science lovers, What If? is right up your alley. I would also recommend this book for anyone who has ever wondered about something kind of strange sounding and isn’t sure where to find an answer. Go to the library or the bookstore and get this book. I guarantee you will not be disappointed! What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books, 2014. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process! Have you read this book? Or do you plan on reading it? Let us know in the comments below!
Book Reviews
The Crossover, Reviewed by Abhi Sukhdial, 10
Have you read a 200-page book full of poetry? Well my guess is no. but if you WANT to read one, I have the perfect book for you! It’s the one and only The Crossover, a novel in verse. I am a big fan of basketball; I sometimes shoot hoops during school recess. Based on my own experience, I know basketball is not just about winning. It’s not easy to do basketball; it’s not easy to do anything. Even if you are the best of the best. The Crossover follows the story of Josh Bell (aka Filthy Mcnasty) and Jordan Bell (aka JB) as they play basketball and go on with their normal middle school lives. Each is talented in his own way, but together they’re unstoppable. When they were young, they were the best of brothers and friends, but over the course of this novel, their relationship becomes strained. But even if they argue or are mean to each other, they are still brothers. And their dad, a former professional basketball player, wants his sons to follow in his footsteps. This book is about friendship and grit. Josh emulates the kind of courage we would all like to have – the courage to fail, and to believe that it is OK to lose. Josh doesn’t give up; he just gets up the next day and practices even harder for the next game. But for a really good book, there are also some cons. This book mainly focuses on basketball, which is not always a good thing, unless you REALLY understand the language of basketball (e.g. swish, swoop, crossover). In addition, the novel in verse format is challenging – you have to pay attention to the sounds of the words, the way the words are written on the page, and the way one poem flows on to the next. This book is also pretty sad at times (I don’t want to give more details because that would be a spoiler!). Finally, one of the problems I have with the story is that it is ONLY told from Josh’s perspective—if some of the poems were written from the father’s or JB point of view, then I would be able to better understand their emotions and that would make the story more interesting. This book was written by Kwame Alexander in 2014 and won the Newbery Medal in 2015 (Yay!). One of my favorite passages is: “I watch the ball leave his hands like a bird up high, skating the sky, crossing over us.” So if anyone is looking for an emotional, but exciting book to read, try The Crossover. The Crossover by Kwame Alexander. HMH Books for Young Readers, 2014. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process! Have you read this book? Or do you plan on reading it? Let us know in the comments below!
Evangeline of the Bayou, Reviewed by Nina Vigil, 11
At 7:30 PM one night, although I was only in the middle of the book, I set out in determination to finish Evangeline of the Bayou. I ended up reading so ardently that time didn’t seem to be passing at all. But it was, and when I finally finished it was 9:30 PM. That’s how amazing it was. Evangeline Clement is a haunt-huntress-in-training living with her grandma in the Louisiana bayou. What’s a haunt huntress? Well, they’re women who protect people from supernatural creatures like bayou banshees, dixie demons, and graveyard ghouls, among many others. Evangeline is very excited to become an official haunt huntress and for her familiar to arrive. But what if she’s not a real haunt huntress, but just a middling? The story begins when Evangeline and her Gran are called to New Orleans to solve a case involving a strange illness. This one is like nothing Evangeline has ever seen before. And soon, she’s gotten herself mixed up in a mystery that quickly gets very frightening and very dangerous. The best part of this book is the clever and innovative plot, and the combination of mystery, adventure and fantasy. I also loved the different creatures. My favorite was Fader, the four-eared cat who is Gran’s familiar. I enjoyed learning about all of the magical elements. There are spells, magical items, talismans, voodoo, and more. The blend of cultures in New Orleans is a lot like the gumbo Evangeline loves. In addition to that, I liked the realistic characters. Take Evangeline-like many people, she aspires to be something (in her case, a haunt huntress), but the problem is that in order to be approved as a haunt huntress, she has to prove that she “has heart”, and she’s worried she won’t be deemed worthy. Being a haunt huntress connects Evangeline to important women like her Gran and her dead mother. From the start, you’re rooting for her. Evangeline of the Bayou is a wonderful, exciting and fast-paced book that I recommend for just about anyone, in particular mystery fans and avid fantasy readers. I suggest you immediately get this book. Trust me, you’ll be glad you did. Evangeline of the Bayou by Jan Eldredge. Balzer + Bray, 2018. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process! Have you read this book? Or do you plan on reading it? Let us know in the comments below!
