Editorial Review

With full-page color photos and a spare, interactive text, this small picture book in the Learn About series uses hands-on, everyday examples to explain basic physics. ‘Big and small, shadows are everywhere,’ states text that is illustrated with side-by-side photos of a skyscraper’s shadow and a butterfly’s shadow. On another spread, examples of a window and a window frame show the difference between the transparent glass, which does not cast a shadow, and the opaque wood, which does. Then the examples move from earthbound details to the universe, discussing changes between night and day. Young children who love to play with shadows, making hand puppets and scary shapes, will be fascinated by the links between their playtime and science facts, and with the increasing push for early childhood resources, this is sure to find wide classroom use.