Basher Science: Chemistry: Getting a Big Reaction

Basher Science

by Dan Green, Simon Basher

Discover the secrets of chemistry, and learn about the properties of matter and the ways in which they interact, combine and change. Chemistry is a compelling guide to a community of characters who make up everything around us.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Childrens, Reference, Chemistry, Comics, School

128 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

There is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads' database.

Dan Green spent his first four years in Africa, until his family swapped the African sun for Welsh rain. He grew up an English-American hybrid in the heart of Wales and then went to Cambridge University to study geology. After college, he shipped out to Italy to chase a dream of rock 'n' roll stardom, wound up in Venezuela, where he became editor of the English language newspaper and survived a coup d'etat and most recently rode his motorbike across Europe to Morocco. Dan is the "voice of Basher" - the best-selling children's science series created by the graphic artist Basher (basherbooks.com/usa/home.html). He has also written humor books, comic strips for Horrible Histories and Horrible Science, and is the author of the Footprint Venezuela Handbook.

Visit his website and find out what he is up to:
www.dangreenbooks.com

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series - STEMtastic book for your young scientist. Fun and very engaging, Basher Science (BS) does a great job of presenting very 'digestible' facts that really stay with you. It is humbling when you learn something new from books for children, but every BS book I have read has taught me something new.

[Yvonne Mannion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Topic: An introduction to terms and concepts relating to chemistry

Summary: This book provides a very basic introduction to chemistry. It is broken down into eight chapters, plus an introduction, index, and glossary. The chapters are further identifiable by color coding. Each section within a chapter has a combination of text and cartoonish illustration, with key concepts identified by bulleted lists.

While some of the chapters have irreverent titles, such as “Nasty Boys” and “Obnoxious Organics,” they contain quite a bit of information in a limited amount of space. The text is written in first person, from the point of view of whatever is being discussed. Each section generally contains one page of text, containing scientific terminology written in an informal style, with a full page illustration following. The illustrations are designed for enjoyment and engagement as opposed to being strictly informational. For example, on pages 22 to 23, the Periodic Table talks about himself, and is illustrated as a smiling table, complete with legs and a strange little man standing on it.

Strengths/Weaknesses: This book would be a fun supplement for a student studying chemistry. While the style is fun and informal, quite a bit of complex vocabulary is introduced. While this is good, there is not much room for depth. The book is visually appealing, with it’s clearly laid out text and whimsical illustrations. However, while entertaining, the illustrations don’t add much conceptually.

Illustrations: The illustrations are fun to look at, but are not particularly helpful for concept development. Each concept has a related illustration in which that concept is personified. For example, melting point is portrayed as a smiling, singing, apparently melting candle, with a thermometer sticking out of the top.

Target Audience: Upper elementary to middle school aged chemistry students.

Curriculum Ties: This book would be a fun addition to a chemistry or science teacher’s classroom library. It could be used as an introduction or review of concepts, as a supplementary material.

Personal Critique: I enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to classroom teachers. While the scientific vocabulary is advanced, it is embedded in simple, playful text. The illustrations are fun and approachable, and the format is appealing, making it a less intimidating option for those science-phobic students.

[Shelbi Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book teaches all about different aspects of chemistry from the Mole to the property changes of matter.

This book would be great to help children, as well as adults, learn the many aspects of Chemistry!

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was a pretty nice read.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the style. I usually don't like non-fiction but I can read these books quick and learn so much I totally recommend this entire series to every one especially people who easy good science.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun way to introduce grade-school children to Chemistry. My son loves the quirky illustrations, and I love the valuable information.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cool little book in a series for children. The series talks about science concepts, by anthropomorphizing them
. Any one who follows me on social media knows this is how I talk about science. Each new concept like melting point, chemical reaction, catalyst, or metals are introduced with a character reminiscent of Japanese amine. A low level description of each concept follows with humor and puns. The science is mostly correct and fun to read. I am looking forward to reading a book on the elements which treats the periodic table in the same way.

[Shilo Quetchenbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kiddo enjoyed this one, although as usual with Basher science books there was too much of an emphasis on puns and some of the more complicated concepts get overly simplified. It does give a good grounding in the basics of chemistry however and gives a jumping off point for more learning on the subject. It paired nicely with the Basher periodic table book, a more complicated periodic table book, a DK science encyclopedia, and a National Geographic chemistry set.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book of definitions. It jumps around and doesn't build upon the previous information. For example, it will talk about elements and processes that aren't explained until several pages later. Obviously not written by a teacher or someone who understands how learning best works. And this is not a children's book, even though the publisher says yes. It's better for teens.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me think chemistry was cool. Although it does present the stereotypical view of chemistry being big explosions, that is exactly the way to get a kid into chemistry. I didn’t understand much in this book, but it helped me get the concepts in my mind long enough to remember them when I was old enough to understand chemistry.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect amount of information to supplement/complement other books in an elementary chemistry unit.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great classroom book for chemistry students needing reference books for projects. Not all science books have to look boring!

A teacher gift I’ll always treasure 🖤

[Serah Chan · Rating 3 out of 5]

GOOD BOOKS. I would really recommend this book to a child. ❤️💗👌

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Without chemical reactions, biological life on earth would not be possible, and without an understanding of how chemistry works, humans would not have made any of the scientific advancements that are familiar in the twentieth century, such as computing, pharmaceuticals and food production technology. This little book, measuring 10cm x 10cm, with 128 bright, informative pages is a lovely introduction to a fundamental aspect of the universe and our lives. It would be ideal for any child from age 8 up to age 11 or 12.

The book is split up into 8 chapters, dealing with 1. Basic States - which explains solids, liquids, gases, melting points, mixtures, elements, compounds etc. 2. Nuts and Bolts - explains what elements are made up, and explains isotopes, metallic bonding, nano-particles and molecules, etc 3. Nasty Boys - explains acids and alkalies, 4. Lab Rats - explains the basic instruments that you might find in a lab, such as Bunsen burners, test tubes, pipettes and explains the basic experimental processes that are carried out in a lab, 5. Organic chemistry, 6. Bright Sparks - explains the basic types of chemical reaction that occur and what makes them occur, introducing concepts such as catalysts and activation energies , 7. Earthy Resources - tells you about how humans use the chemical resources of the earth, such as air, water, metals and rocks 8. Chemicals for Life - explains something about the chemical reactions that go on inside the human body and support life.

The scope is very wide, and the information in each of these chapters is concise, but fascinating and useful. Of course, the stand out feature of this series of books is the snappy, accessible language and the bright, simple illustrations. It would be ideal for a young child (about 8 years) who is interested in science or specifically in chemistry, and would also be good reading for a slightly older child who might want to read around the subject, and get a useful overview of what chemistry is about.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son loves these books because the text is fun and the illustrations are quirky. I love this book because my son is learning, and in this case, about Chemistry.

[Esmeralda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chemistry: Getting a Big Reaction by Simon Basher the book is about all types of liquids that they are. The book is about that all of mixing different liquids are and what happens if you mix them. I like this book because I read different liquids that I did not know before. I will recommend this book to people because I know they are going to be interesting in this book.

[Abraham Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great children's book on chemistry!