MicroAliens: Dazzling Journeys with an Electron Microscope Hardcover – September 1, 1993

Description

From School Library Journal Grade 4-8-A wonderful introduction to the microscopic world. After a brief history of the electron microscope, readers are treated to 134 stunning, black-and-white photographs of an array of items-from algae to pollen to taste buds-organized by their environments. Common organisms and things found in the air, the water, the yard, the home, and inside and outside the human body are described in the concise, fascinating text. Lionel Bender's Around the Home (Gloucester, 1991) uses a similar approach and includes microscopic views of nonliving items such as fabrics and electronic gadgets. Sarah Lovett's Extremely Weird Micro Monsters (John Muir, 1993) also takes a look at microscopic animals. Those two titles use full-color photographs of slides, and seem garish in comparison to the stark clarity of MicroAliens.Cynthia M. Sturgis, Ledding Library, Milwaukee, ORCopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. Read more From Booklist Gr. 6-10. The author welcomes readers to the world of microstructure, where the minuscule becomes gigantic. A "mystery photo" opens the book, which is divided into topical chapters--air, water, inside the body, etc.--that present a new view of common objects, from insects to hair to cells. Tomb's short introduction is a good overview of the history of the electron microscope and how it works. The in-text photographs are black-and-white (the dust jacket photo is the only one in color), and pen-and-ink illustrations are used to remind us what a specimen looks like to the naked eye. Although some hand-colored photographs would have been nice, this is still a fascinating look at a relatively unknown world that will inform readers without bogging them down in overly scientific text. Christie Sylvester Read more See all Editorial Reviews