Everything Under the Sun: a curious question for every day of the year
By Author / Illustrator
Molly Oldfield, Momoko Abe, Kelsey Buzzell, Beatrice Cerocchi, Alice Courtley, Sandra De La Prada, Grace Easton, Manuela Montoya Escobar, Richard Jones, Lisa Koesterke
Genre
Information books
Age range(s)
5+
Publisher
Penguin Random House Children's UK
ISBN
9780241433461
Format
Hardback
Published
09-09-2021
Synopsis
"An absolute delight" - David Walliams
"One of the best kids books I have ever had the pleasure of reading" - Pandora Sykes
A collection of 366 curious questions asked by children from around the world, based on the award-winning podcast by original QI Elf, Molly Oldfield.
How much bamboo can a giant panda eat?
Do aliens exist?
What we would do if we didn't have a prime minister?
Why do hammerhead sharks have such strange-shaped heads?
Find out the answers to these curious questions and much, much more!
Ponder where ideas come from with award-winning illustrator, Rob Biddulph. Find out why you taste things differently when you have a cold with Michelin star chef, Heston Blumenthal. Learn about everything from how astronauts see in the dark to what the biggest dinosaur was with experts from the Natural History Museum.
Fascinating facts are accompanied by gorgeous illustrations making the perfect gift for Christmas. Whether you read a question a day, or dip into it whenever you are feeling curious, this is a book to treasure and share all year round.
Illustrated by Momoko Abe, Kelsey Buzzell, Beatrice Cerocchi, Alice Courtley, Sandra de la Prada, Grace Easton, Manuela Montoya Escobar, Richard Jones, Lisa Koesterke, Gwen Millward, Sally Mullaney, and Laurie Stansfield.
Praise for Everything Under the Sun:
'Trivia fans will relish Everything Under the Sun' - The Guardian
"A wonderful gift for families" - Evening Standard
"This is a book to treasure all year round" - My Baba
"As cute as it is educational" - Babyccino Kids
"A wonderful collection of 366 curious questions about everything from science to nature, dinosaurs to space" - Scottish Sun
"Simply mesmerising compendium" - Waterstones
Reviews
Kyle
Molly Oldfield, host of the Number 1 and award winning Everything under the Sun podcast, has transferred some of the best questions into this bumper hardback collection. Each day of the year is accompanied by a thought provoking question straight from the mind of a child. From 'Where do ideas come from?' to 'Why does an octopus have three hearts?', a full range of topics and areas of the scientific world are covered through January to December.
The structure and lay out of the book is easy to navigate and allows readers to find specific dates and months without a problem. A monthly content double spread is also a handy addition to the start of each month which allows readers to see if there are any specific questions that take the reader's interest. Of course, the book design is to allow for a curious question on each day of the year but this doesn't mean that readers can't take full control and pick and choose the questions themselves.
The questions are answered in a detailed yet accessible way which allows children in KS2 to develop a conceptual understanding of the topic. Younger scientists may still need to have the content differentiated to allow for easy understanding but there is still ample opportunity for any child to broaden their knowledge. The scientific content is accompanied by beautiful and vibrant illustrations which reflect the content of the questions. These illustrations have been created by superb team who have all contributed to the magic of this text.
The book as a whole is a joy to pick up and thumb through and I found myself intrigued to find the question on specific dates in the year. I feel this would be the same with all readers which allows for every individual to create a unique way of reading this book. Having my own young scientist, I am particular looking forward to creating a habit of reading a question day to help broaden his understanding of the world. I can foresee a similar approach being successful in classrooms too, particularly primary school environments.
I have recommended Everything Under the Sun to the Science Coordinator at my school and would suggest that all school settings would find it to be a useful and purposeful addition to their school libraries.
256 pages / Reviewed by Kyle Matravers
Suggested Reading Age 5+
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