Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements: Understanding the Building Blocks of Everything

by Jon Chad

Overview

Step out of your element with Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements, the latest volume of First Second's nonfiction graphic novel series!

A book of fun chemistry experiments has fallen into the wrong hands. Only Mel can use her knowledge of the periodic table to put an end to a maniacal madman's evil schemes.

The periodic table helps us quickly understand the 118 elements, those tiny substances that make up everything in the world. By using the periodic table, we can recognize how these building blocks behave, find trends and patterns in the universe, and make predictions about elements that haven’t been discovered yet. Join us in learning about the periodic table, and maybe the next big discovery will be yours!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250767615
Publisher:	First Second
Publication date:	03/14/2023
Series:	Science Comics Series
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	99,715
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	9 - 13 Years

About the Author

Jon Chad is obsessed with giant robots, screen-printing, and bookmaking. Chad has been commissioned by Cartoon Network to make artist books based on shows like Adventure Time and The Amazing World of Gumball. He is the illustrator of Science Comics: Solar System, and the author of Leo Geo, Science Comics: Volcanoes, Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements, and Pinball: A Graphic History of the Silver Ball. Jon is also the creator of the multi-format immersion narrative BAD MASK.

Editorial Reviews

A Junior Library Guild selection

"Solid gold." —Kirkus, starred review

"A fun scientific romp with a Black girl protagonist; perfect for middle grade readers who need a chemistry review or a clever introduction to the periodic table." —School Library Journal

From the Publisher

★ 2022-12-14
An evil chemist’s oddly blocky fortress serves as the setting for a dream quest through the elements.

Well-prepared but afflicted with severe test anxiety, Mel falls asleep the night before a chemistry exam and finds herself in the Land of the Elements, helping blobby Hydrogen recover a book of spells, er, chemistry experiments snatched by the evil Elemancer. Traveling systematically through the Periodic Fortress from Alkali Metals to Noble Gases, she’s forced to draw on her knowledge of molecular processes and each group’s common characteristics to get past a series of elemental monsters—and, climactically, to face her fears as the sneering nemesis assaults her with pop-quiz questions: “How many elements are there?” “Is an element’s atomic number the same as its weight?” “What do you call it when matter changes from a solid to a gas?” Along with rooting for the young savant, readers will have challenges of their own to face, as Chad loads the script and art with information on atoms and atomic numbers, compounds versus mixtures, ionic and covalent bonding, isotopes, allotropes, radioactivity, the periodic table’s origins and organization, and how select elements of the 118 identified so far have been put to use. Mel, who like her comforting mom (the only other human figure) presents as Black, wakes up ready to tackle the ultimate test with new, and just possibly contagious, confidence in her preparation.

Solid gold. (table of elements, metric conversion chart, glossary, bibliography) (Graphic nonfiction. 11-15)

Kirkus Reviews

03/17/2023

Gr 4–6—The latest title in this series reviews the elements and periodic table with help from a gaming adventure. Mel, who presents as Black, loves role-playing games, but is dreading tomorrow's chemistry test. When she falls asleep, she drifts into a dream of the "Land of Elements." There she has the chance to use her knowledge of the elements to thwart an evil Elemancer before he can "get up to some good old-fashioned villainy." She and her companion, Hydrogen, must make their way through the Periodic Fortress by taking advantage of the weaknesses of metals, nonmetals, and other elements to reach the Elemancer and foil his plans. Mel's explanations to Hydrogen cover the beginning of chemistry in classical times, the development of Mendeleev's periodic table, chemical reactions and bonds, and even uses for various elements. Back matter includes the periodic table, a metric measurement conversion chart, a glossary, and bibliography. VERDICT A fun scientific romp with a Black girl protagonist; perfect for middle grade readers who need a chemistry review or a clever introduction to the periodic table.—Suzanne Costner

School Library Journal