Ada Lace on the CaseEmily Calandrelli with Tamson Weston
Renee Kurilla, Illustrator
Simon & Schuster, 2017 123 pages
Grades 3-5
Realistic Fiction/Mystery
Ada has recently moved to a suburban San Francisco apartment in a cul-de-sac. Making new friends would be hard enough, but she is stuck all summer in her room, thanks to a broken leg. Luckily, Ada has her scientific journal to keep her busy and, eventually, the visits from a lively new neighbor, Nina, who encourages Ada to keep tabs on the neighborhood with binoculars Rear Window style. While observing the neighborhood, Ada and Nina make enemies of an obnoxious neighbor-boy and discover the disappearance of a different neighbor's beloved dog, Marguerite. What happened to the little Yorkie? His owner seems bereft without him. Is foul play involved? If so, which neighbor is responsible? Ada and Nina use science, observation, and instinct to track down the missing pooch. The answer is much less ominous than the girl were led to believe and new friendships are formed as a result of the investigation.
Ada Lace Sees Red
Emily Calandrelli with Tamson Weston
Renee Kurilla, Illustrator
Simon & Schuster, 2017 126 pages
Grades 3-5
Realistic Fiction
The new school year has begun and Ada and Nina have a new art teacher: Ada's Dad! Having your father as your art teacher is not as much fun as it sounds, especially if art is your worst subject. Science and math make so much sense to Ada, but colors escape her. With the help of creative and artistic Nina Ada learns why art is so difficult for her and finds away to compensate for her lack of abilities. But what will her artist parents say when they discover the truth about their non-artistic daughter? Will they send her away? Meanwhile, Ada's attention and energy is going into a robot designing competition for kids where her nemesis-neighbor is also competing. Ada works really hard to design the best robot, but does it have what it takes to bring home the medal?
Scientist Calandrelli is passionate about encouraging girls to delve into science and is all about STEM. To this end she has developed this new series with a strong and scientifically smart young female protagonist to expose kids to STEM concepts as well as keep them entertained. In On the Case Ada uses technology, science, and careful observation to track down the clues to locate the missing pooch. Sees Red is more STEAM than STEM and demonstrates how different kids can see the world completely differently and can still be friends, even through their brains may process in completely opposite ways. In fact it's their differences that bring Ada and Nina together. They compliment each other and work together to create a robot that is both functional and fashionable, winning the big competition. Perfect for kids graduating from early chapter books, this series provides a linear plot with interesting characters, real-life situations, and gentle humor. The print is large, chapters are short, and the cartoon-like illustrations are plentiful, inviting in reluctant readers. Even though the two main characters are girls, boys will enjoy this series as well. It has great potential for classroom use, but will be picked up simply for pleasure reading. The series is agenda-driven, but kids won't notice or care. Science-minded young people will find a friend in Ada and non-scientific kids will enjoy the story and be comforted that maybe they are better at something, such as art, than the "smart kids". Back matter includes scientific information about the principles covered in the story, that were actually interesting, even to a non-science geek such as myself. The third installment in the series, Take me to Your Leader, deals with ham radios and outer space and is set to be released in May, 2018.
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