Zoey and Sassafras: Books 3, 4 and 5
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I love these little books aimed at children
ages 6 to 10 because they feature a girl using science to solve problems.
American cultural has made significant improvements in breaking glass ceilings
since the 1960s, but we still have a long way to go. It’s books like these that
will help overcome stereotypes and, hopefully, lead more girls into fields that
don’t rely on beauty or body type.
Each book is basically the same format, and
yet is it not: a magical creature shows up at the barn behind Zoey’s house with
a problem. Zoey’s mother has been helping the wide range of creatures for
years, and now Zoey, along with her best friend, Sassafras the cat, gets to
help too. She has Thinking Goggles (protective eye wear) that she wears to help
her think…and without realizing protecting her eyes…and a journal where she
keeps all her scientific notes.
The difference between each of the books is
the scientific approach Zoey must figure out to use, Sometimes she needs to do
some investigation, other times research, and other times she must run
experiments.
In Book 3 “Merhorses and Bubbles,” the story
opens with Zoey and Sassafras creating a tool to use to see the mayfly babies
who live in the water. I love this!
Parents and caregivers learn how to duplicate this tool before they’ve
reached page ten. But when Zoey heads to the stream, she isn’t able to find any
stream bug babies anywhere. Then Pip, her mother’s old friend and a talking
purple frog shows up, alerting Zoey that the merhorses are in danger of
starving to death. Zoey must use her research and investigative skills to learn
why the stream no longer has any insects and how to fix it. “Merhorses and
Bubbles” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.
In Book 4 “Caterflies and Ice,” two of tiny
caterflies (wait until you read their descriptions; they are so cute!) ring the
barn’s magical doorbell needing help. An unexpected spring snowstorm has
created danger for the caterflies’ eggs. They are trapped in a cave behind a
frozen waterfall. Zoey knows she must
hurry to save the unhatched babies. When her first attempt fails, she relies on
her experimental skills to solve the problem. “Caterflies and Ice” is a little
less captivating, receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s
world.
In Book 5 “The Pod and The Bog,” Pip the
purple, talking frog, returns with a glowing rainbow stone. Pip explains that it’s a seed pod from a
magical plant. Zoey and Sassafras have been watching and recording the growth
of a pea plant. Zoey must use her
research and experimental skills determine what the pod is. Tension rises as
experiment after experiment fails. “The Pod and The Bog” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.
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