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Connected
Chloe has a dot on her shirt called a node. So do her friends and family. They are joined by lines called edges.
The edges spread out and connect people all around the world.
Connected introduces children to the mathematical concept of networks, while emphasising that no one is alone.
Everyone is connected.
The edges spread out and connect people all around the world.
Connected introduces children to the mathematical concept of networks, while emphasising that no one is alone.
Everyone is connected.
Kindle Edition
About the author
R.A. Stephens
15 books21 followersR. A. Stephens is a teacher by day, writer, editor and publisher by night. She is passionate about the written word, what stories can do to take a reader to a new world and open our eyes to love, compassion, the bigger picture and much more. When not working, teaching or writing, she enjoys living in the country and spending time with her kids and cats. R. A. Stephens is a teacher and careers advisor and works with teenagers to help them think about their career past school. She is working on a large range of stories for children with a focus on science, mathematics and investigation. R.A. Stephens lives in country Queensland and writes from the experience of both city and country life.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 1, 2026
This picture book is a fun way of introducing childen to the whole idea of some of the concepts that underly graph theory in maths. It's not a story as such, but more of a fun educational tool. Children are shown how they're connected to each other via networks of family and friends, who in turn are connected to family and friends, and so on. No one is alone. We're all connected. It's kind of like 'Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon', but for kids. I can imagine parents or teachers going through this book with a child and then helping the child to draw their own networks (or build a model of their network).
Children are also introduced to terms like nodes, edges, networks, spanning trees etc. And there is a list of terms and their definitions in the back of the book.
A fun way to show kids that we are all connected.
Children are also introduced to terms like nodes, edges, networks, spanning trees etc. And there is a list of terms and their definitions in the back of the book.
A fun way to show kids that we are all connected.
June 1, 2026
I confess to a mathematics mental block so anyone who can explain its concepts in simple terms deserves stars. Connected follows R. A. Stephens' very successful Apples not Orpals and is highly commended.
June 3, 2026
The blurb mentions mathematical concepts and it’s true: they are there in the book – explained clearly and simply, easy for even young children to understand. I’ll come back to that later.
What I love most about the book is that it shows how, through our interpersonal relationships, we are all connected. I think that is a very important understanding to develop. We may look, think and act differently, but there are invisible lines that link us, some that we feel more than we see, some stronger than others, but all present nonetheless.
Do you read the dedications at the front of books? I always do. Mostly they are to loved ones, and sometimes they even hint at a reason for the dedication.
In this book, the author’s dedication is ‘For anyone who has ever felt alone’ and the illustrator’s is ‘To a world built with love and connection’. How appropriate for a book that beautifully demonstrates that, although we may sometimes feel it, we are definitely not in this world alone.
The relationships are obvious from a first glance at the cover. The endpapers, as well as the cover, portray a diversity of people – shapes, sizes, ages, interests, gender and ancestry. Each person is marked with a red dot. On the cover and the back endpapers, the dots are joined by lines of different colours. Children will enjoy poring over these illustrations and seeing how each person is linked to other people, and through them to more. They may be inspired to draw their own versions to show their relationships to people in their own family or friendship and neighbourhood groups. There are so many opportunities for rich discussion in these pages alone.
Inside the book, Chloe introduces herself and her family and explains how they are connected to each other and their friends. She then extends that idea and shows how we might be linked to others in our own town, to others in places all over Australia and even across the whole world. The concept is explained very clearly in both text and illustration so that even young children can understand and be fascinated by it.
At the same time, Chloe introduces the mathematical terms node, edge and network. She provides a basic explanation of graph theory, a spanning tree and a circuit in an easy-to-understand and fun way that supports children’s learning.
At the back of the book, ‘Extra Maths Facts’ provide more detail for those interested.
This book is fun to read simply to show how we are all connected, but the introduction to mathematical concepts adds an extra dimension. I think children could spend many hours discussing the different people depicted and creating their own stories about the connections between them. They may also be inspired to draw their own family and friendship trees.
What I love most about the book is that it shows how, through our interpersonal relationships, we are all connected. I think that is a very important understanding to develop. We may look, think and act differently, but there are invisible lines that link us, some that we feel more than we see, some stronger than others, but all present nonetheless.
Do you read the dedications at the front of books? I always do. Mostly they are to loved ones, and sometimes they even hint at a reason for the dedication.
In this book, the author’s dedication is ‘For anyone who has ever felt alone’ and the illustrator’s is ‘To a world built with love and connection’. How appropriate for a book that beautifully demonstrates that, although we may sometimes feel it, we are definitely not in this world alone.
The relationships are obvious from a first glance at the cover. The endpapers, as well as the cover, portray a diversity of people – shapes, sizes, ages, interests, gender and ancestry. Each person is marked with a red dot. On the cover and the back endpapers, the dots are joined by lines of different colours. Children will enjoy poring over these illustrations and seeing how each person is linked to other people, and through them to more. They may be inspired to draw their own versions to show their relationships to people in their own family or friendship and neighbourhood groups. There are so many opportunities for rich discussion in these pages alone.
Inside the book, Chloe introduces herself and her family and explains how they are connected to each other and their friends. She then extends that idea and shows how we might be linked to others in our own town, to others in places all over Australia and even across the whole world. The concept is explained very clearly in both text and illustration so that even young children can understand and be fascinated by it.
At the same time, Chloe introduces the mathematical terms node, edge and network. She provides a basic explanation of graph theory, a spanning tree and a circuit in an easy-to-understand and fun way that supports children’s learning.
At the back of the book, ‘Extra Maths Facts’ provide more detail for those interested.
This book is fun to read simply to show how we are all connected, but the introduction to mathematical concepts adds an extra dimension. I think children could spend many hours discussing the different people depicted and creating their own stories about the connections between them. They may also be inspired to draw their own family and friendship trees.
June 11, 2026
Connected tells the story of Chloe who has a dot (mathematical term: "node") on her shirt. She introduces her family to the reader and explains how they are all connected (with lines called "edges"). The connections between people expands as Chloe shows how everyone has different friends, and each are connected to yet more people. Mathematics aside, this book is a lovely exploration of how we humans are all connected to one another.
I really liked this book. It’s one for kids who love noticing details, and also communicates an affirming message of being together. (Plus, for the math lovers, there’s a useful page at the end expanding on the concepts depicted.)
I really liked this book. It’s one for kids who love noticing details, and also communicates an affirming message of being together. (Plus, for the math lovers, there’s a useful page at the end expanding on the concepts depicted.)
June 15, 2026
Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.
This book is an educational tool to help teach children a maths concept. I can see this book as helpful for teachers to teach about nodes and networks and showing how no one is alone. For some children this book would also be good for children feeling alone seeing how they are connected to others.
For Teachers and parents helping a child understand this concept it is in simple terms and would be helpful for those children who are more visual in their learning. This would be helpful for Home schoolers also.
This book is an educational tool to help teach children a maths concept. I can see this book as helpful for teachers to teach about nodes and networks and showing how no one is alone. For some children this book would also be good for children feeling alone seeing how they are connected to others.
For Teachers and parents helping a child understand this concept it is in simple terms and would be helpful for those children who are more visual in their learning. This would be helpful for Home schoolers also.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews