How Big Is Big? How Far Is Far? All Around Me

This thought-provoking volume contemplates the relative attributes of humans, animals, and the planet. “What is the hottest thing you can think of? Are you thinking of the Sun?” posits one spread (a bolt of lightning is hotter than the sun’s surface, it reveals). While most humans could not “walk happily in a land of ice,” a polar fox survives at temperature of -58 degrees Fahrenheit. A cicada can jump up to 28 inches, which is 400 times its own height: “If humans could do the same, we would easily hop over a tower 50 floors high.” Cen illustrates in an alluring style with novel use of angle and perspective to underline the book’s comparisons. Readers will pick up some juicy trivia, sure, but more broadly, the book may inspire them to think differently about humans’ place within the wide world. Ages 5–up.[em] (Oct.) [/em]