Elin Kelsey is an internationally respected leader in the field of
environmental science and education, as well as the award-winning
author of "Not Your Typical Book About The Environment" and other
books for children and adults. She consults around the world on
environmental projects and is an adjunct professor at the Monterey
Institute of International Studies and Royal Roads University. She
lives in Pacific Grove, CA.
Soyeon Kim is a Toronto-based, Korean-born artist who specializes
in work that merges real-world materials and fine sketching and
painting techniques to produce three-dimensional pieces. She is a
graduate of the Visual Arts program at York University in Toronto.
Brain Pickings 13 Best Childrens, Illustrated & Picture Books of
2013
Brain Pickings 13 Best Science & Technology Books of 2013
Parents' Choice Foundation Award, 2013
Best of 2012 Selection, Kirkus Reviews
YABC Choice Awards Winner, Non-fiction Picture Book Category,
2012
Green Book Festival Children's Book Award Honorable Mention,
2013
Kirkus Best of 2012
Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award, 2013 "In You are
Stardust, Elin Kelsey works magic. This lyrical book effortlessly
connects kids to their timeless origins, and the natural world,
while teaching them science too. Soyeon Kim's playful illustrations
will allow children's imaginations to run wild, even as they will
hang on the book's every word. Bravo!"
-- Juliet Eilperin, National Reporter for the Washington Post, June
18, 2012 "We are made of earth and water and air and stardust, and
we are more related to animals and plants than we ever imagined.
Everything about us is found in the natural world. Our atoms are
from ancient stardust, and the water and salt that flows within us
is part of the unchanging cycle that goes back to the beginning of
time. We breathe pollen that, when released, may actually create a
plant. We grow at night and seasonally shed and grow hair, in
similar fashion to animals. We are also a living planet for
millions of microorganisms. Kelsey doesn't lecture or
overcomplicate the information. She speaks directly to readers in a
way that opens minds to big ideas and paves the way for thoughtful
questions of their own. The litany of facts comes alive in vivid,
descriptive language, lending a philosophical, elegant and mystical
aura to current scientific findings. Kim's incredibly unusual
illustrations are sublime. Employing varied painting techniques,
vivid colors, multidimensional cutouts, unexpected materials and
unusual textures, she creates a view of nature that is at once real
and otherworldly. This is a work that demands to be read and
reread, studied and examined, and thoroughly digested. It is
perfect for sparking adult and child conversations about our place
in the universe. A remarkable achievement."
-- Kirkus Reviews, starred review, July 26, 2012 "Readers learn
interesting facts about themselves and are urged to make parallels
to the planet at large. Meanwhile paper cutouts of children travel
from page to page in the mixed-media dioramas, illustrating the
text's assertions in a fantastical way...each one provides much to
consider and absorb."
-- Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, School Library Journal,
September 1, 2012 "An exceptional collaboration."
-- ForeWord Reviews, September 1, 2012 "This is a book that reveals
both the relationships and parallels between humans and the planet
they live on, something children think about a lot...and it does so
in a clear and compelling way...Don't miss this one, which begs to
be shared intimately with children. Gather together, be still, and
learn how we are stardust."
-- Julie Danielson, Kirkus Book Blog Network, September 14, 2012
"As the worlds of science and illustration continue to show,
sometimes non-traditional forms of illustration - the whimsical,
the mysterious, the abstract - are the best ways to draw in a new
audience to scientific ideas...[You Are Stardust] transcends
typical illustration and leaves room for children and adults alike
to ponder the wonderful facts it presents."
-- Glendon Mellow, Scientific American, November 15, 2012 "Like the
child pictured, who turns cartwheels on an overturned tree,
readers, too, will join in this joyful ceremony of the cycle of
life."
-- Jennifer M Brown, Shelf Awareness for Readers, November 30, 2012
"A breathtaking picture book written for children, with a message
meant for everyone...I'm pretty sure I held my breath the entire
first time I read this book. The illustrations, the text...It's all
sensational."
-- Sturdy for Common Things, January 22, 2013 "As an educator, this
picture book is what I like to call a 'thinking book.' It is the
type of multi-leveled narrative that, over time, draws you in and
prompts more questions than gives answers. For parents and
teachers, it is the best kind of book to share with children of all
ages because it sparks meaningful conversation."
-- Nancy Rawlinson, Canadian Children's Book News, February 6, 2013
"An exquisite picture-book that instills that profound sense of
connection with the natural world. Underpinning the narrative is a
bold sense of optimism -- a refreshing antidote to the fear-appeal
strategy plaguing most environmental messages today...a thoughtful,
beautiful piece of early science education presented by two women,
the most heartening such example since Lauren Redniss's
Radioactive."
-- Maria Popova, Brain Pickings, March 8, 2013
Praise for Not Your Typical Book About the Environment:
"Elin Kelsey has produced a highly engaging book . . . The
illustrations are fantastic and make a complex subject --
conservation and sustainable living -- easy to understand."
-- Jane Goodall
Ask a Question About this Product More... |