The bedtime book of incredible questions

The bedtime book of incredible questions

Isabel Thomas, 1979-

Book - 2023

"Have you ever struggled to concentrate because there are SO many questions buzzing around your brain? Here are answers to seventy-one of the most bamboozling questions and curious queries that you can think of. This book will define, debunk, and demystify the trickiest of questions and open your eyes to amazing facts you have never even thought of!"--

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Subjects
Children's questions and answers.
Curiosities and wonders > Juvenile literature.
Curiosities and wonders.
Juvenile works.
Trivia and miscellanea.
Creative nonfiction.
Illustrated works.
Picture books.
Genres
Juvenile works
Trivia and miscellanea
Creative nonfiction
Illustrated works
Picture books
Published
New York : Bloomsbury Children's Books [2023]
Language
English
Main Author
Isabel Thomas, 1979- (author)
Other Authors
Aaron Cushley (illustrator)
Item Description
"First published in Great Britain as The Bedtime Book of Impossible Questions in October 2022 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc"--Copyright page.
Physical Description
95 pages : color illustrations ; 29 cm
Audience
Ages 6-10
Grades 2-3
ISBN
9781547613601
  • Shall I tell you a secret?
  • Why does rain smell rainy? Could I touch a rainbow?
  • What is the world's worst smell? Why do we need two ears?
  • Does yellow look the same to me as it does to you?
  • How long are millipedes? Why don't humans have tails? Could a tortoise really win a race with a hare?
  • How many words are there? Can I learn to speak to animals?
  • How do we know that unicorns have never existed?
  • Could I swim in ice cream? Are cats liquid or solid?
  • If you can feel bitter, do other feelings have tastes?
  • How does gravity work?
  • What is the speed of dark? How does Earth float in space?
  • How do we know Earth is round? How long would it take to go all the way around the world?
  • Why am I me and not someone else?
  • If I was born in a different year, would I still be me? Why can't I remember being a baby?
  • Why don't caterpillars get stung by nettles? Why do insects have six legs?
  • How do bubbles work? Why are bubbles always round?
  • Why do children have to go to bed so early? Can I sleep with my eyes open?
  • Why doesn't gravity work on balloons? Can birds fly to space if they want?
  • How do airplanes fly?
  • Why don't animals wear clothes?
  • Why are puppies cute? Do wasps know that they hurt people when they sting?
  • Why do we need eyebrows? Why do we cry?
  • Why do we get only one birthday a year? How long would it take to count to infinity?
  • How many stars are there? How big is the universe?
  • Are aliens real?
  • How many atoms are there in my body? What are atoms made from?
  • Do animals have imaginations?
  • Why are there so many different types of living things?
  • What's the opposite of a spider? Why are animals such different sizes?
  • If everything is made of atoms, are feelings made of atoms? Do plants have feelings?
  • Where do new ideas come from?
  • Why are plants green? How many trees are there in the whole world?
  • Why can't I just eat my favorite foods? How do soft foods make bones strong?
  • How heavy is Earth?
  • Why is it easier to balance on a moving bike?
  • Where do bruises come from and where do they go? Why can't I tickle myself?
  • Why do I like my friends more than I like other people? Do animals make friends?
  • Why don't we live forever? Why do trees live longer than animals?
  • Why am I yawning? Why can't I remember falling asleep?
  • How do animals know where they are going when they are underground?
  • Why do I dream? How do I know I'm not dreaming right now?
  • How do we know what dinosaurs were like?
  • How do we know what stars are made of?
  • If we are made of Stardust, how did it get to Earth?
  • The adventures continue …
Review by Booklist Review

"Science isn't about knowing lots of facts. . . . Science is about asking questions." This Q & A compilation taps into children's natural curiosity and affinity for asking questions. Some of the featured queries ("How does gravity work?") are immediately analytical, and some related quandaries ("Why can't I just eat my favorite foods?"; "How do soft foods make bones strong?") are grouped together for continuity. What makes this collection especially fun, however, are the musings that are existential ("Why am I me and not someone else?") and seemingly silly ("Could I swim in ice cream?"). In each case, the science concepts introduced are conversationally and effectively explained. Captions, boxed texts, and speech bubbles offer additional information while cartoonish illustrations and a mix of realistic and amusing situations extend the book's levity. At the heart of each Q & A is encouragement to keep asking questions. For instance, "what's the opposite of a spider?" Could it be an animal with eight arms? Bedtime might not be the best time, however, to encourage such active thinking!

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review

K-Gr 4--When is the best time to think of every question in the universe? Bedtime, of course! Thomas has all of the answers, or as she is quick to explain, at least the very best guesses based on current science. Questions are wide-ranging, from "Does yellow look the same to me as it does to you?" to "Do animals have imaginations?" and--sure to be a parent favorite--"Why do kids need to go to bed so early?" Each kid-friendly question is explained in clear, humorous language; it's neither dumbed down nor inflated beyond what is currently known. Cushley fills the pages with colorful, diverse characters and spot drawings that will delight children as much as the book's questions will. VERDICT Booktalk this one so that it finds its audience; it's highly recommended for purchase.--Hillary Perelyubskiy

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

Not-so-short answers to over 70 random questions about life and the universe. Science is all about asking questions, Thomas writes, and most of those posed here are the sort that "are still bamboozling biologists, confusing chemists, and making physicists feel perplexed." Some may seem to be no-brainers, but the answer to, for instance, "Are cats liquid or solid?" proves to be "both," according to strict definitions of the two terms. "Why do we get only one birthday a year?" launches a lively discussion of astronomical cycles and birthday celebrations in ancient Rome. Topics range from soap bubble dynamics and the "speed of dark" to our "squidgy and flexible" human genome, and children won't be the only readers surprised by some of the revelations dished up: No, we don't actually know what gives airplanes lift, why plants are green, or why we yawn…and petrichor, the fresh smell of rain, actually comes from an oil called geosmin that's exuded by soil microbes. An invitation to ponder the very nature of reality in response to "How do I know I'm not dreaming right now?" makes clear that the author doesn't shy away from big questions, either. Most of the human figures in Cushley's fanciful, stylized illustrations are children, and most are brown-skinned. Stimulating queries for bed, or any other, time. (Nonfiction. 8-10) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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