Review by Booklist Review
This colorful picture-book biography introduces marine biologist Eugenie Clark, first as a child watching sharks swim at a large aquarium and pretending to be one. On a visit to the seashore, she swims underwater, looking for her favorite fish. As she grows up, she reads books about sharks, takes challenging science courses, and eventually earns a doctorate in zoology. Clark joins research missions in the field, carries out experiments, and writes books to clarify misconceptions about sharks. Keating points out obstacles Clark faced as a woman determined to become a scientist, but only in the appended back matter does the time frame of her life become clear. The writing flows well, keeping a clear focus on Clark and her dream, while including pertinent details from the career of the Shark Lady, known for her groundbreaking research and her work to change people's perceptions of sharks. The stylized digital illustrations are richly colored and appealing, though occasionally they seem more fanciful than realistic. A lively introduction to an American scientist.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2017 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Keating (Pink Is for Blobfish) offers a lively portrait of scientist Eugenie Clark, who pursued a passion for sharks. Playfully mixing the aquatic and terrestrial, Miguens (One Small Donkey) shows sharks circling the stacks of the library where a young Clark reads: "Whale sharks. Nurse sharks. Tiger sharks. Lemon sharks. Eugenie wanted to know about them all." Despite facing discrimination as a woman, Clark earned a zoology degree then literally dove into field research, changing the way sharks were perceived. Through Clark's story, Keating suggests that, with perseverance, a childhood fascination can evolve into a life's work. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Kathleen Rushall, Andrea Brown Literary. Illustrator's agency: Astound. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-4-Eugenie Clark loved sharks from the time she first saw them at the aquarium when she was a young girl. Determined to learn everything she could about them, she dove into books, eventually earning several zoology degrees. After earning her doctorate, she made her first open ocean dives and spent her career studying sharks and trying to disprove their reputation as mindless killers. Clark became the first scientist in the world to train them, proving that they were not vicious predators but rather beautiful creatures worthy of protection. She boldly pursued her dreams during a time when many men thought women weren't smart enough to become scientists or brave enough to become ocean explorers. The production is enhanced by bright instrumental background music and well-placed sounds, including splashing waves and gurgling bubbles. A section titled "Shark Bites" provides additional facts; for example, there are more than 400 shark species. A time line highlights information about Clark's life that doesn't make it into the story (for instance, she earned her zoology degrees, discovered new shark species, and made her final dive at age 92). VERDICT This inspiring story of a trailblazing woman will work well as a supplement to biography units and lessons about conservation and protecting endangered species.-Anne Bozievich, Friendship Elementary School, Glen Rock, PA © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A tribute to the courage and indomitable will of the renowned ichthyologist.This eloquent profile follows Clark from a childhood visit to an aquarium through her demonstration that sharks can actually be trained and so are not "mindless killers" as widely supposed. Throughout, Keating highlights the stubborn tenacity with which she shrugged off the pressure to "Be a secretary! Be a housewife!" and followed a dream "as big as a whale shark." Over the course of her career, she discovered several new species of fish (the Red Sea sand diver, the barred xenia pipefish, and the volcano triplefin) and proved that sharks "deserved to be studied,protected,and loved." Keating focuses so closely on presenting her subject as a woman successfully overcoming gender obstacles that there are no references to Clark's family, her death in 2015, or the fact that her mother was "of Japanese descent" and her father "American" (presumably white) until the timeline at the endand the prejudice she encountered as a result of her mixed-race heritage goes unmentioned. In Miguns' neatly drawn illustrations, Clark and her mother display slightly East Asian facial features, and figures in crowd and classroom scenes are often people of color. The author appends a section of shark facts, along with a note detailing some of Clark's other discoveries and accomplishments. Inspiring, if agenda driven, and serviceable as a companion or alternative to Heather Lang's Swimming with Sharks, illustrated by Jordi Solano (2016). (bibliography) (Picture book/biography. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
