Skyscrapers: The Heights of Engineering (Science Comics Series)

by John Kerschbaum

Overview

Leave no brick unturned in John Kerschbaum's Science Comics: Skyscrapers, the latest volume in First Second’s action-packed nonfiction graphic novel series for middle-grade readers!

Every volume of Science Comics offers a complete introduction to a particular topic—dinosaurs, the solar system, volcanoes, bats, robots, and more. These gorgeously illustrated graphic novels offer wildly entertaining views of their subjects. Whether you're a fourth grader doing a natural science unit at school or a thirty-year-old with a secret passion for airplanes, these books are for you!

In this volume, join a pair of superheroes as they uncover the secrets of skyscrapers, from the great Egyptians pyramids to the world’s tallest building. Read along and learn how skyscrapers are a bold combination of applied physics, ingenuity, and a lot of hard work!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626727946
Publisher:	First Second
Publication date:	11/19/2019
Series:	Science Comics Series
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	145,968
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

John Kerschbaum was born and raised on Long Island, New York. He has written and illustrated books for both children and adults. His work has been published by MAD Magazine, the New York Times, the New Yorker, DC Comics, the Associated Press, MTV, and many comics anthologies. In 2008, he contributed illustrations and created a fold-out poster puzzle for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Family Map which is still being enjoyed by visitors a decade later. He currently resides in Queens with his wife and daughter.

Editorial Reviews

10/18/2019

Gr 4–6-In a visual history of the innovations that have made it possible to design and construct tall buildings, a nerdy superhero flies his sidekick Quiz Kid on a worldwide tour, from Egypt's ancient Great Pyramid of Giza to Dubai's Burj Khalifa skyscraper, with stops to pay homage to notable achievements in engineering, such as Chicago's Home Insurance Building and New York's Flatiron Building. From there, the duo check out the structural features of modern skyscrapers, watch a building go up, and learn about the nitty-gritty of foundations, concrete, trusses, the role of mass dampers in reducing vortex shedding, elevators, and the evolution of greener structures. Though the dialogue bubbles sometimes swell to the bursting point with information, our tour guide's explanations are as clear as the cleanly drawn cartoon cutaways and construction sites. Quiz Kid's exclamations ("Kewl!", "Wowza!") lighten the text, as do his flashbacks about rescuing his inept mentor from supervillains. The content consistently rises above the cutesy expressions: "But up, up, and away you go! Conquering obstacle after obstacle with science!" VERDICT An engaging and welcome update to Lynn Curlee's Skyscraper or Chris Oxlade's Skyscrapers.-John Peters, Children's Literature Consultant, New York

School Library Journal

Praise for the Science Comics series:

"This series—written by a handful of authors—seems determined to offer a useful introduction to anything a curious grade-school student might wonder about. The insight behind these books is a powerful one. So much information about the world around us is actually better conveyed visually, through charts, illustrations, and sequential panels, than purely using words." —New York Times

"Like having a Time Life Science Library in comic books. Which is awesome!" —Popular Science

From the Publisher