Survival of the Fittest (Survival of the Fittest #1)

The title of this STEM graphic novel chapter book refers not to a tooth-and-nail battle of wills, but rather an anthropomorphized animal game show during which contestants “of all sizes and skills compete to come up with the most useful... the most creative... the most brilliant design for an invention based on something that exists in the natural world!” In keeping with the episode’s theme of engineering, each contestant—these range from a pugnacious diabolical ironclad beetle to a humpback whale participating remotely—must persuade the three shark judges in seeing how their species-specific attribute can “solve an important problem.” After demonstrating the power of its grip, a gecko explains how the nanoscale hairs that “create an electromagnetic attraction between my feet and whatever surface I’m on” could be employed by robots to repair satellites in orbit or catch and remove space junk. A cheeky running joke about how the tiger shark judge—who “loves eating, swimming, and eating while swimming”—only wants to know how each feature would help her capture more dinner provides a connective through line to this didactic series launch by Donnelly (Big Money), illustrated via static naif-style artwork by Saburi (Bernard Writes a Book). Ages 7–11. (Apr.)