From the Publisher
Harrison’s clean, bright illustrations add expression and personality to the story. ...this endearing protagonist earns a place on the children’s STEM shelf. A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again.” — Kirkus Reviews
“Cece is a smart and curious girl who loves to get to the bottom of all her complex questions. ...Harrison’s expressive digital illustrations have a lot of energy, color, and motion...A fun way to introduce scientific methods.” — Booklist
“Excited by her teacher’s assignment to find and investigate a question, [Cece] pairs up with a partner, Isaac, to brainstorm ideas...The story includes images of an inviting science classroom and mentions a variety of sciences and a range of scientists diverse in race and gender. ... Words and pictures combine to make smooth blend of entertainment and education.” — School Library Journal
Booklist
Cece is a smart and curious girl who loves to get to the bottom of all her complex questions. ...Harrison’s expressive digital illustrations have a lot of energy, color, and motion...A fun way to introduce scientific methods.
Booklist
Cece is a smart and curious girl who loves to get to the bottom of all her complex questions. ...Harrison’s expressive digital illustrations have a lot of energy, color, and motion...A fun way to introduce scientific methods.
School Library Journal
05/01/2018
K-Gr 3—Budding scientist Cece is always asking questions such as "Why?" "How?" and "What if?" Excited by her teacher's assignment to find and investigate a question, she pairs up with a partner, Isaac, to brainstorm ideas, come up with a question, make observations, test possibilities (variables), interpret their data, and make a conclusion. Their question is "Do dogs eat vegetables?" and her dog Einstein is their subject. They try out different vegetables, but Einstein turns up his nose at them all. Harrison's animation-style digital illustrations—a mix of vignettes, full pages and spreads—show a long-haired, brown-skinned girl, her mixed-race family, her lighter-skinned friend, and an adorable terrier. Several of the pages show the questions and their answers on "Ms. Curie's Science Project Worksheet." Cece's disappointment at the uninteresting results of her project is contrasted, on a facing page, with a portrait of a brainstorm, possibly suggested by her banana dessert. Einstein does eat vegetables in smoothies. The story includes images of an inviting science classroom and mentions a variety of sciences and a range of scientists diverse in race and gender. VERDICT Words and pictures combine to make smooth blend of entertainment and education that may be useful in early elementary classrooms. An appealing concoction.—Kathleen Isaacs, Children's Literature Specialist, Pasadena, MD
Kirkus Reviews
2018-03-27
Cece loves asking "why" and "what if." Her parents encourage her, as does her science teacher, Ms. Curie (a wink to adult readers). When Cece and her best friend, Isaac, pair up for a science project, they choose zoology, brainstorming questions they might research. They decide to investigate whether dogs eat vegetables, using Cece's schnauzer, Einstein, and the next day they head to Cece's lab (inside her treehouse). Wearing white lab coats, the two observe their subject and then offer him different kinds of vegetables, alone and with toppings. Cece is discouraged when Einstein won't eat them. She complains to her parents, "Maybe I'm not a real scientist after all….Our project was boring." Just then, Einstein sniffs Cece's dessert, leading her to try a new way to get Einstein to eat vegetables. Cece learns that "real scientists have fun finding answers too." Harrison's clean, bright illustrations add expression and personality to the story. Science report inserts are reminiscent of The Magic Schoolbus books, with less detail. Biracial Cece is a brown, freckled girl with curly hair; her father is white, and her mother has brown skin and long, black hair; Isaac and Ms. Curie both have pale skin and dark hair. While the book doesn't pack a particularly strong emotional or educational punch, this endearing protagonist earns a place on the children's STEM shelf.A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again. (glossary) (Picture book. 5-8)
