Book Review: "Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers"

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Age Range: 11-14+ yrs

"Stiff is an oddly compelling, often hilarious exploration of the strange lives of our bodies postmortem. For two thousand years, cadavers―some willingly, some unwittingly―have been involved in science's boldest strides and weirdest undertakings. In this fascinating account, Mary Roach visits the good deeds of cadavers over the centuries and tells the engrossing story of our bodies when we are no longer with them." -Stiff summary.

This book is a great example of both narrative and explanatory nonfiction. The information is offered in a narrative told in first person, but all of the information is factual and explains the human body and the history of human cadavers. It contains a few images between chapters,

some of which highlight the human body, such as the one above. 

This book provides information in a very humorous way, which keeps reader attention after the subject matter has drawn it in. 

The image above is the title and description of the second chapter. The other chapters are similar in that they're humorous in their word choice, but give a good idea of what the section will be about.

Readers who have a macabre sense of humor, or even readers who are only vaguely interested in the human body after life, will greatly enjoy reading this hilarious and factual book.

This book has won the ALA Alex Award in 2004, which according to the ALA, "The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18." In 2003 it was a Guardian First Book Award Nominee, which is, according to The Guardian, "a literary award presented by The Guardian Newspaper". In 2006 it was a Lincoln Award Nominee, which "is awarded annually to the author of the book voted as most outstanding by participating students in grades nine through twelve in Illinois" according to the Association Illinois School Library Educators. These nominees and award show that this book did a fantastic job of luring in readers and entertaining them while they learned, which is what I believe a nonfiction book for youth should do.

Book Review: How to Be An Elephant by Katherine Roy

Title: How to Be An Elephant

Author: Katherine Roy

Publisher: David Macaulay Studio

Copyright Date: 2017

Age Range: 7-11 yrs

"The savanna is not an easy place to live, even for African elephants, the largest land animals on earth. If it's a challenge for these 7,000-pound giants,w hat's it like for their newborn babies?

An infant elephant has precious little time to learn the incredible array of skills that are necessary to keep up, from projecting her voice across a 10-octave range to using the 100,000 muscles in her trunk to stay hydrated. But this giant-to-be has the perfect classroom--a family herd made up of her mother, sisters, cousins, and aunts. With their help and protection, she'll learn how to survive, how to thrive, and how to be an elephant." -- How to Be An Elephant summary.

This book is an excellent example of narrative nonfiction. It follows a newborn elephant as she learns the skills that she needs to survive in the savanna. It contains interesting information conveyed through beautiful illustrations.

I've chosen these two examples from the book to show the beauty of the illustrations, as well as the information they give. The image above is a creative way to show readers how an elephant uses their trunk to smell. The image itself is different and dynamic, especially when compared to the image below.

The image below shows the realistic application that the author also uses. There's something calm and engaging about the art style used.

Readers who are interested in animals (elephants, specifically) will fall in love with the beautifully crafted illustrations as they show what a young elephant must do and learn to survive and grow. This book has been lovingly researched by the author herself, and she has also done all of the illustrations.

While this book hasn't won awards, there are many favorable, reputable reviews. This book would be a good addition to any library's collection because it is engaging, educational, and well written.