The Quest to Digest

by Mary K. Corcoran, Jef Czekaj (Illustrator)

Humorous text and illustrations follow an apple's journey through the human digestive system. Discover why mucus is so important to your body and how food particles are absorbed by the small intestine and turned into energy. Readers also learn why we burp, vomit, and pass gas.

Genres: Science, Picture Books, Nonfiction, Health, Food, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2006

About the author

Mary Corcoran grew up in Mount Vernon, New York. Camping trips with her large family were a great opportunity for a young girl fascinated by the natural world and interested in the sciences.

Mary studied Biology at the City University of New York-Lehman College and did her student teaching at the Bronx High School of Science. After working as a Student Conservation Association volunteer at Acadia National Park in Maine and at Badlands National Park in South Dakota, Mary moved to Colorado Springs and dedicated her life to teaching science.

But her life in science took on a life of its own. Mary spent a summer as a National Park Service ranger at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument in Colorado. Her love of teaching and creating lessons and activities for her students naturally flowed into her love of writing. She began writing for children's magazine—poems, science articles, and fiction.

Reviews

[Daniel Kleven · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the same team that brought you The Circulatory Story. My 4th grade class liked this, and enjoyed finding easter eggs between the two books.

[Mariah Roze · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book that explained the journey that an apple takes through the human digestive system. It explained why mucus is so important to your body and how food particles are absorbed by the small intestine and turned into energy. My students learned why we burp, vomit, and pass gas. I was extremely impressed with this book because even though it covered hard material my students still enjoyed the book and paid close attention to it.

[Cynthia Varady · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so full of information, I even learned a ton. Yet, at the same time, even my 6-year-old son enjoyed it and learned a bit too. He has a model of a body hanging on his bedroom wall, and likes to point out where which organs are the large and small intestines. We could all use a brushup on human anatomy.

[IUS F19 ERIC WISE · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great way to explain the human digestive system in a non-grossly way.

[Jessica Maddox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute!

[Daniel Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary-This book takes the reader on a journey through the digestive system. There is a green character who acts as the narrator and goes from being eaten to after it comes out of your body. The journey takes you through the mouth, stomach, both intestines, all the way until the end.
Personal Response-This book is quite silly. I think I can connect to it because of the silly drawings, how the illustrations are set up and adds humor to something that can be quite graphic for young readers. I also like how it answers questions like what is burping, as well as other key vocabulary terms toward the end of the book.
Illustrations-The illustrations are silly. It almost reads like a comic book and how the pages are sometimes broken up with speech bubbles. The illustrator, Jef Czekaj makes the book fun for such a more mature topic.
Classroom Connections- This book could be used for a writing class and explore the recommended food groups. Children in the older levels like grade 4 could log what they eat for an entire week to see how healthy their diet is. Additionally, children could use this book to explore human systems like the circulatory system as well in health class. Students would need to label body parts associated with the circulatory system and give a brief explanation of what it does for the body.

[Emilia P · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love Jef Czekaj's illustrations and I really enjoyed learning where farts come from (bacteria in the large intestine eating undigested food!). It's quirky but not overwhelming, very clever and colorful and memorable! Definitely can see the working-with-Nickelodeon experience in his work, and it's great.

[Shubhi]

I loved the child-like illustrations that are sure to keep kids interested. It is also nice that all the different things that go into the digestive system are personified and therefore become easier to understand. this probably one of the most fun ways to learn biology.

[Gigi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book presents the digestive system in a simple and direct way. I like how the author does not "dumb down" the vocabulary, but explains the word meanings clearly. There are big, colorful pictures that kids will respond to. Plus the icky topic is just one kids love.

[Jungyun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dear Ms Greenhous
I just finished this book is fun book because if I'm 4 feet,the small intestine in is 20 feet long.