Human Body Theater by Maris Wicks Published by First Second, 2015 Age Range: 12-14 (Middle school) Lexile Score: GN920L School Library Journal'’s Top Graphic Novels 2015 Booklist Top 10 Books for Youth 2015, Science & Health Human Body Theater is a graphic novel that tells all about the human body. The premise of the book is a dramatic production, with a skeleton as the narrator. Parts of the body are "supporting characters", including a finger, cells, bones, etc. It is broken into 11 acts, with each body system represented. Each page contains full color illustrations, with text both on the page and in speech bubbles. Some pages are in frames, while others are not. The book also includes many diagrams, including one that names all the bones and one for all the muscles in the body. Here is an example of a page: The book is organized very well, with logical sequence. It contains a table of contents, so students can flip to the body system they are studying. It also has a glossary. One thing that did bug me as I was reading, is that I found a few typos. It was nothing major, just random spelling or punctuation errors, but I feel like that should have been caught by an editor at some point. Most people probably wouldn't even notice, but a student with an eye for detail might question the validity of the book if it includes typos. I think this book does a good job of teaching kids about the parts of the body. The way it is presented is funny and simple, and even younger students would enjoy looking at the pictures. I believe this book could supplement any middle school biology class, and would probably be well-received even in a high school Anatomy class. I took Anatomy in high school, and this book was a good refresher, and a very simple way to learn about complex body systems. It is over 200 pages long, and there is a lot of information included, but I was able to read it in one sitting, due to the graphic novel format. Also, having it broken into Acts also helps with the pacing. Here is an example of a page: This page explains a topic that can be hard to understand; the difference between red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. The way Wicks explains it makes sense, and the illustrations are a great visual to help students remember. I think that many students will enjoy this book, even those who traditionally dislike science. It presents hard topics in a humorous way, and students will be drawn to the many illustrations and jokes. Hopefully, while they are admiring the "other stuff", they can learn something in the process! It is not meant to be exhaustive, but it is a good supplement to a tedious anatomy or biology textbook. If students enjoy Human Body Theater, they might also enjoy other graphic novels by Maris Wicks:
For students who want to learn more about the human body, here are a few websites that are interactive and informative:
Overall, I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars. I did enjoy it, but the few typos and misprints bugged me. Hopefully they will do a reprint that fixes the errors!
2 Comments
Jenny Yergin
10/11/2016 01:46:21 pm
I initially passed over this book after just reading the title, I am so glad I read your review. This would be a great resource should I get to teach Anatomy & Physiology again, I agree I think the students would love this and use it. Was there an educator's guide available?
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Kayla Taylor
10/16/2016 01:43:39 pm
There was not an educator's guide that I could find. Like I said in my review, I wish they would do a reprint where they fix the mistakes and they could also add an educator's guide and more resources.
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AuthorMy name is Kayla Taylor. I am currently taking LIS-S672 Seminar in Youth Literature - Nonfiction. These are the books I have read this semester and my reviews. ArchivesCategories |