|
|
|
|
This web site is: |
 |
|
|
Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein |
|
|
Amazon Sales Rank: 29208
Publication Date: 2008-06-16
Publisher: Sandpiper
ISBN: 054701435X
Type: Paperback
Number Of Pages: 32
|
When he was born, Albert was a peculiar, fat baby with an unusually big and misshaped head. When he was older, he hit his sister, bothered his teachers, and didn’t have many friends. But in the midst of all of this, Albert was fascinated with solving puzzles and fixing scientific problems. The ideas Albert Einstein came up with during his childhood as an odd boy out were destined to change the way we know and understand the world around us . . .
Average Rating: 
Review: 2009-01-30
Great book for 9 yr old
Son had to bio for school and this was a great and fun way for him to learn about Einstein..
Review: 2008-12-29
Great Biography
Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein
Great story for most children but especially for the child who deems himself out of sync with his classmates. Young Albert proves the point that we all have something to offer, faults in all.
Review: 2008-09-10
Excellent book for "special kids"
Some very smart kids just don't fit in the classroom. They learn differently. This book assures those kids that they are not "weird", but just might need to learn lessons differently. Unfortunately, most state educational programs do NOT address these needs.
Hopefully, these different-learning kids will learn to accept themselves rather than to succumb to any titles that may be assigned to them, ie, slow learner.
Review: 2005-10-02
Relatively (ha ha) good
If every adult biographer has his or her own personal style, why should the case be any different for children's book biographers? And when it comes to picture book biographies, certain names come to mind. David Adler, of course, though his books are so uncommonly dull that I tend to pity the children I hand them to (being a children's librarian and all). Peter Sis, though his bios require a great deal of time and patience to parse. James Rumford to some extent, though "Sequoyah" is probably his best bio to date. No, when it comes down to it Don Brown is the picture book biographer that nine of ten kids prefer every time. I don't have any actual statistics to back that statement up, I just say what I see. And what I see is an author who is able to take unknown heroes (Mary Kingsley, Alice Ramsey, Ruth Law, etc.) and too well-known heroes (Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, etc.) and give them interesting picture book biographies that kids will both relate to and love.
We all know some basic facts about Einstein. He was a guy with a head of white unruly hair. When you yell, "Hey, Einstein!", you are making reference to the fact that he was once a genius. So how much do you know about this great man as a child? In this book, Brown introduces us to Albert from day one (March 14, 1879, to be exact). As a boy, Albert has his good moods and he has his bad moods. In a good mood he can create a house of cards fourteen stories high and ponder the mysteries of a compass for fun. In a bad mood he is prone to hitting his little sister, terrifying his tutor, and getting so upset that his nose turns white. As we watch, Albert is given an amazing amount of freedom. He wanders the Munich streets alone at the age of four. He discovers geometry with the help of a friendly medical student. The book progresses and we learn a little about Albert's personality from offhand comments. "Soldiers on parade excite the boys. They disturb Albert". At end of this journey, Albert comes up with theory of relativity and, "For the world, Einstein comes to mean not fat baby, or angry child, or odd boy, but great thinker". And now our children can understand where all genius has its beginnings. In the ordinary and familiar.
What I enjoyed about the book was that Brown doesn't linger on just the good things in Einstein's life. No child's a saint, and Albert is no exception. Brown humanizes this latter-day god, giving him a family, a childhood, and a history that kids today (in spite of their love of computerization and high-tech toys) will understand. Who amongst us doesn't recognize Albert's reluctance to engage in organized sports as something we, or someone we know, have also felt? The story is laid out beautifully. The illustrations are little more haphazard. Granted, I really liked the picture of Albert engaged in a temper tantrum. His little fists are clenched and his nose, true to the text, is a slightly whitish color. By and large these pen and ink pictures colored in with watercolors work well. There's just the occasional oddity. When teachers wonder if Albert is dull-witted, Brown illustrates a disturbingly glazed-eyed kid who reinforces their concern. It's a peculiar picture, but there's no denying that it conveys the text well.
I saw Mr. Brown speak not too long ago to a gathering of librarians, and I found that I was not especially impressed with him as a person. Nonetheless, the man does nice work. And of the work that he has done, "Odd Boy Out" is probably one of his best. It's a beautifully rendered story that kids will prefer far above and beyond similar Einstein biographies. Not genius, but pretty darn close.
 |
Amazon List Price: $6.99
Choose an Amazon Store
 Buy from Amazon |
|
 Go back to previous page |
|
|
Product reviews, information, best prices and cheap buys for a range of popular products. Ranging from books, video games, DVD's, toys and music. Products include the fabulous Harry Potter, Gordon Ramsay, A Thousand Splendid Suns, The God Delusion, A History of Modern Britain, The Children of Hurin, The Secret, I Can Make You Thin, (Paul McKenna), The Kite Runner , Tricks of the Mind, Derren Brown, Suite Francaise , Catherine Tate Comic, Pirates Of The Caribbean, Shrek 3 the Third, Rocky Balboa , James Bond - Casino Royale , Dad's Army - Series 9, Doctor Who, Prison Break Season 2 , Scrubs - Series 5, Blood Diamond , Doctor Who - Series 3, Dreamgirls, It Won't Be Soon Before Long, Maroon 5, Back To Black, Winehouse, Black Rain, Ozzy Osbourne, Send Away the Tigers, Manic Street Preachers, The Best Club Anthems, Icky Thump, White Stripes, Sweet Warrior, Richard Thompson, 50 cent , abba , akon , amy winehouse , arcade fire , arctic monkeys , avril lavigne , beatles , biffy clyro , beverley knight , beyonce , black sabbath , bob dylan , bob marley , bjork , bon jovi , bruce springsteen , bryan adams , cascada , cat stevens , cliff richard , coldplay , css , dance , david bowie , deep purple , depeche mode , diana ross , dolly parton , elliot smith , elton john , elvis presley , eric clapton , eurovision , fall out boy , fleetwood mac , frank sinatra , funeral for a friend , genesis , groove armada , hawkwind , hed kandi , iron maiden , james , jeff buckley , jimi hendrix , johnny cash , joni mitchell , justin timberlake , kaiser chiefs , kings of leon , led zeppelin , linkin park , love songs , madonna , manic street preachers , mark ronson , maroon 5 , megadeth , mcfly , metallica , michael buble and many more. Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein
|
|
|