MG/YA – The Chemistry of Food

Mooney, Carla. The Chemistry of Food. Nomad Press, 2021. 978-1-647-41026-1. 118 p. $17.95. Grades 6-10.

This comprehensive overview does a deep dive into the formal chemistry of cooking and preparing food as well as a breakdown of the food humans eat and the impact it has on their bodies. Typical of most nonfiction books, there are bolded words, popouts, color photos, but this text also includes QR codes throughout for videos to enrich the experience. The content is broken up into five chapters, most of which have popup comic boxes with characters that follow along throughout the book.

THOUGHTS: A fun introduction to cooking and food investigation for middle grade students. The book can easily be adapted for classroom use or specific project research.

664 Food Technology          Samantha Hull, Ephrata

MG – Science Gets Physical (Series NF)

George, Enzo. Science Gets Physical. Crabtree Publishing Company, 2020. $10.95 ea. $65.70 set of 6. 48p. Grades 5-9.

Physical Science in Basketball. 978-0-778-77557-7.
Physical Science in Cycling Sports. 978-0-778-77634-5.
Physical Science in Football. 978-0-778-77635-2.
Physical Science in Snow and Ice Sports. 978-0-778-77650-5.
Physical Science in Street Sports. 978-0-778-77651-2.
Physical Science in Water Sports. 978-0-778-77652-9.

Science meets sports in this series aiming to educate readers about the science behind popular sports. Organized into six chapters, each book explains how physics plays a part in the technique and function of each sport. Each book includes a science experiment readers can complete at home to gain a real understanding of the physics explained in the previous chapters. Glossary terms, Learning More, and Index sections help readers understand and navigate through the nonfiction text as well as encourages readers to learn more about the physics of sports. There are plenty of sidebars and photographs that highlight how the scientific theories explained in the text are demonstrated in the real world through contemporary sports.

THOUGHTS: A useful text for athletes seeking an advantage on their competition and for students eager to learn the science behind popular sports. It is a good addition to a collection of sports books and a good offering for teachers of physical science to share with students who may be reluctant to learn about science. The text and captions are easy to read and informative while the colorful, modern photographs make the information feel relatable.

796 Sports     Jaynie Korzi, South Middleton SD