Icky Squishy Science, Vol. 1

Children's Literature - Judy Katsh

The hard thing about this book is deciding whether it'll grab kids because of its icky-squishyness, or because of its presentation of fun and easy-to-do science projects. Either way, it's a no-lose venture into the world of why-things-work. The author balances the fun and wonderment with clear explanations of the science. The pencil line drawings complement by conveying the humor and illustrating the procedures. It's a nice little package.

School Library Journal

Gr 3-7This book of science activities has definite child appeal. Most of the projects ("You Can Blow Up a Balloon with a Smashed Banana" and "Why Does a Dead Fish Float?" are typical samples) are fairly easy and use accessible materials. In most cases, Markle's chatty instructions and lively explanations provide more scientific information than the experiments themselves. In "Foam at the Mouth," for example, kids simply brush their teeth, take a drink of carbonated liquid, swish it around, and let the foam ooze out. Along with humorous comments, the author gives an explanation of what happens and provides a brief history of toothpaste. Her text is filled with enthusiasm, and she neatly interjects facts throughout. A few experiments require the use of a stove, and the directions clearly indicate the need for an adult partner. Reluctant students in particular should be attracted to the simple instructions, intriguing scientific tidbits, and, of course, the sheer grossness of the activities.Steven Engelfried, West Linn Public Library, OR

Kirkus Reviews

Few writers have quite the handle Markle (Pioneering Frozen Worlds, p. 138, etc.) does on how kids think about science. For those who want to know why a dead fish floats or whether a warm worm stretches farther than a cold one, she provides brief puzzles, explanations, and simple experiments using household items to help explore these questions and more than 30 other icky science topics. The ideas are more appropriate for casual experimentation than for science fair projects; the explanations are brief, and there are seldom suggested follow-up activities. There's no obvious order to the presentation, and sometimes the text is more teasing than truthful: Children stretch a warm gummy worm, not a real one; "Blow Up a Marshmallow!" instructs readers to put a marshmallow in the microwave for 30 seconds and watch—hardly earthshaking. Not an essential purchase, but it has definite child-appeal.