Kid Innovators - Review

Author: Robin Stevenson

Genre: Nonfiction

Format: Hardback

Pages: 208

I want to thank Quirk Books for a copy of Kid Innovator in exchange for my honest review. This book is on sale now through their website or your favorite bookstore!

Kid Innovators is the seventh book in the Kid Legends series, but the great thing is each book stands on its own, with its own theme. This was the first book I've read in the series, and even though I have seen this series at bookstores, on my library dash, and on the Quirk website, I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into. 

The first thing you notice about Kid Innovators is the cover artwork by Allison Steinfeld. It's bright, fun, and catches your eye right off the bat. This continues through the entire book bringing the histories of each person to life. It adds a great visual to the book. I felt it was a great addition for younger readers who might get bored with just words on a page, but it also brings a bit of the story to life. And, I love the character drawings she did for each person. 

But, the artwork while a great addition to each little biography that gets told, wasn't my favorite part. My favorite part was the language that Robin Stevenson used throughout this book. One of the biggest turn-offs for me in middle grade is when it feels like authors talk down to readers. Just because this book is aged toward younger kids doesn't mean you cannot use bigger words, and that's exactly what Robin Stevenson does. Even I had to jump on Google to puzzle out a few things, and I don't think that's a bad thing. This a nonfiction book, meant to teach. But, this is anything but dry. Stevenson found a balance in the book that I that was spectacular. Each story is upbeat and she definitely tries to make learning fun, but without shying away from certain facts. She mentions slavery in the chapter about Madam CJ Walker, she mentions Alan Turing's suicide, hard topics, but important ones nonetheless. Yet, Stevenson handles it in a way that could spark conversation, and without too much explanation, leaving room for parents, or teachers, to explain these topics as needed.

Stevenson does all of that but somehow still manages to use a tone that I feel would excite a lot of young readers.

As an adult reader, I enjoyed the fact that there were quite of individuals that I didn't know anything about inside this book. Which made the book a little more enjoyable to read because it wasn't filled with histories I'd learned before. 

I also really liked that each chapter was fairly short but packed full of information. Each person got a little bit of their back story that explained how they ended being the innovator they would eventually become. Basically, these are mini-biographies that are well researched, and a wonderful introduction to each individual person. A great starting point that includes a bibliography page at the end of the book, in case anyone wants to read more on a certain person. 

I really enjoyed this book and how brightly colored and fun it was to read. I loved the section's pages and how they were done up almost like circus posters. All around it's an inviting read. My only big complaint about this book was a personal one. For reasons, I skipped the chapter on Elon Musk. I just wasn't interested. Everything else though was fantastic. This is a great book for kids who love science, computers, inventing. Or, kids who love nonfiction and learning.

So a huge thank you to Quirk for sending this my way. While Kid Innovator isn't going into my permanent collection, it's going to a kid I know will love it!

HAPPY READING!!