Starred Review ALA Booklist (Tue May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)

Starred Review A field trip to the natural history museum with Mr. Tiffin's class? That's perfect for Kimmy, who collects fossils. She impresses Jake, a classmate, with how much she knows about dinosaurs, but when she mentions wanting to become a scientist, he responds, "Girls aren't scientists." Surprised and deflated, Kimmy goes quiet. Looking at photos of paleontologists of the past, she sees only men. But in the next room, Mr. Tiffin calls her over to see an exhibit sign with photos of the woman scientist who discovered that dinosaur fossil. Hopeful again, Kimmy confides to her teacher, "I want to be just like her," and receives a heartening response. An appended two-page section features Kimmy's favorite paleontologists, six women currently working in the field and one girl from the nineteenth century: groundbreaking fossil scientist Mary Anning. While all the picture books in the series about Mr. Tiffin's class are well worth reading, this one is special. Karas uses gouache, matte medium, and pencil to illustrate a setting unfamiliar to many children, while sensitively conveying Kimmy's emotions even when, disheartened and doubting herself, she stops talking for a while. Written with clarity and finesse, the story concludes with a pitch-perfect line. A beautifully crafted picture book.

Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

Timely intervention keeps a young science enthusiast's career ambitions on the rails in this fourth outing for Mr. Tiffin's class.A born naturalist ("She even collected owl pellets. And she took them apart"), Kimmy eagerly shares her knowledge about dinosaurs and fossils on a trip to the museum—until she's silenced by classmate Jake's disparaging remark that "girls aren't scientists." No sooner does her perspicacious teacher spot her sudden change, though, than he leads her to a specimen of Gasparinisauria, a dinosaur named, she reads, in honor of paleontologist Zulma Nélida Brandoni de Gasparini. Even Jake admits that that is "awesome," and for the rest of the visit Kimmy becomes a positive fount of information about raptor toes, Stegosaurus brains, and other dinosaur lore. "When I grow up," Kimmy declares, "I want to be just like her." Mr. Tiffin's "I think you already are," cements the teachable moment. Kimmy, her teacher, and Jake are white, but along with capturing his characters' changing moods and responses with artfully angled faces and other body language, Karas portrays the rest of the class with diverse features and skin tones. A gallery of women paleontologists of the past and present makes an apt closer.A pivotal moment in a child's life, handled with grace and sensitivity rather than conflict or ineffective lecturing. (Picture book. 6-9)

Horn Book

On a school trip to the natural history museum, Kimmy, who loves science and dinosaurs, is silenced when her male classmate scoffs, "Girls aren't scientists." With support from teacher Mr. Tiffin and plenty of inspiring evidence to the contrary, Kimmy finds her voice. In Karas's friendly gouache and pencil illustrations, the class wanders grand halls and awe-inspiring fossil displays as the drama unfolds.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

Timely intervention keeps a young science enthusiast's career ambitions on the rails in this fourth outing for Mr. Tiffin's class.A born naturalist ("She even collected owl pellets. And she took them apart"), Kimmy eagerly shares her knowledge about dinosaurs and fossils on a trip to the museum—until she's silenced by classmate Jake's disparaging remark that "girls aren't scientists." No sooner does her perspicacious teacher spot her sudden change, though, than he leads her to a specimen of Gasparinisauria, a dinosaur named, she reads, in honor of paleontologist Zulma Nélida Brandoni de Gasparini. Even Jake admits that that is "awesome," and for the rest of the visit Kimmy becomes a positive fount of information about raptor toes, Stegosaurus brains, and other dinosaur lore. "When I grow up," Kimmy declares, "I want to be just like her." Mr. Tiffin's "I think you already are," cements the teachable moment. Kimmy, her teacher, and Jake are white, but along with capturing his characters' changing moods and responses with artfully angled faces and other body language, Karas portrays the rest of the class with diverse features and skin tones. A gallery of women paleontologists of the past and present makes an apt closer.A pivotal moment in a child's life, handled with grace and sensitivity rather than conflict or ineffective lecturing. (Picture book. 6-9)