Jason Chin (1) (1978–)

A phenomenal picture-book blending factual narrative and fantastic adventure, Jason Chin's Redwoods follows a young boy as he learns about the astonishing Sequoia sempervirens - the tallest living creatures on our planet. A straightforward, informative text that covers everything from life-span - coast redwoods can live for more than 2000 years - to canopy ecosystem, is paired with gorgeous watercolor illustrations that depict a young boy in the process of reading and learning. Picking up a show more book on redwoods that he finds in the subway, the boy is transported to the forest, and his exploration - looking at seeds and stumps, climbing to the crown - mirrors the facts under discussion in the text.

This is an immensely appealing book on so many levels! Both educational and entertaining, it highlights the idea that learning is fun, and subtly hints at the fact that scientific exploration is inspired by, and uses, the same powers of creativity and imagination as any other kind of human endeavor. The illustrations themselves are beautiful, making this a visually pleasing book as well. I liked the little environmental messages that Chin works into his art: an abandoned newspaper on the subway reads: You Can Fight Global Warming, while a torn-down poster warns of the Polar Bears' Last Stand. Chin is to be commended for creating an outstanding non-fiction title for children, excellent in every aspect of its conception and production. Highly, highly recommended! show less

This is an excellent non-fiction exploration of the constituents of life, narrated by a little girl visiting what looks very much like the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson. It begins with the largest object that will be described, an 8-centimeter long Calliope Hummingbird, the smallest bird in the US. (Guides in the lower right-hand corner of the first two double-page spreads show the conversion of centimeters to inches and millimeters to centimeters.)

The author/illustrator then moves show more on, downward in size, to the smallest butterfly, the smallest bee, the smallest hairs on your body, and so on, describing successively smaller objects. Each object is meticulously depicted, and is overlaid with text giving details and background.

Thus readers will learn what cells are and how many are in the human body; what bacteria are; and all about the parts inside cells and how they work. They will explore molecules, DNA, and atoms as well as the tiny constituent parts of atoms. Finally Chen guides readers to consider how all these tiny parts come together to make wholes:

“Atoms and molecules combine to make Earth and everything on it, from the air you breathe to the water you drink, from the ground beneath your feet…to life itself . . . All living things, from the tallest trees and longest whales. . . to the smallest birds, butterflies, and bees, are made of cells - just like you.”

He adds, “You are made of the same stuff as everything else in the universe.” And yet, as he points out, you are also “a singular person, who can think and feel and discover . . . the universe within.”

Back matter includes additional background and notes about the text and the watercolor and gouache illustrations.

Evaluation: Author/illustrator Jason Chin is the well-deserving recipient of multiple awards for both his writing and his artwork. This book for readers 8 and over is extremely accessible, with clear explanations of complex ideas and outstanding artwork, making it a natural for the classroom. What kid doesn't want to understand how the world works, asking parents hundreds of questions about it? This book will help with the answers. show less

With the same blend of magical realism and natural history that he used to such brilliant effect in his Redwoods, picture-book author/artist Jason Chin spins the tale of a young library patron who, upon opening a book about coral reefs, finds herself embarking upon a fantastic underwater journey. The text itself is engaging, but strictly informative - the reader learns about this important marine ecosystem, from the corals themselves, whose limestone skeletons gradually become an underwater show more city, to the many species who use that city as a home and/or hunting ground - while the artwork shows the young girl witnessing everything being described. Decorative endpapers, with various marine species, and a brief afterword provide more information to curious readers.

I really enjoyed Coral Reefs, which was chosen as one of our September selections in The Picture-Book Club to which I belong, where our theme this month is "ecosystems," and think that its creator, Jason Chin, is one of the best of the new picture-book artists out there. The illustrations here are gorgeous, and the concept of an informational book paired with a visual adventure-story is a good one - both effective and entertaining. All in all, this was a lovely picture-book, one I would recommend to all young ocean lovers, as well as to fans of the author/artist! show less

Having explored the vastness of the cosmos in his 2020 Your Place in the Universe, Caldecott Medal-winning author/illustrator Jason Chin turns to smaller vistas in this new picture book. Taking readers on "a microscopic journey" exploring smaller and smaller items—from tiny animals to tiny hairs (vellus hairs), cells to molecules, atoms to particles—highlighting the cosmos inside the human body, and then tying it back into the universe, which is made up of all the things we are made up show more of. The book closes with an extensive and informative afterword exploring many of the topics raised in the main narrative, as well as a list of sources...

Being a great admirer of Jason Chin—I have read all of the books he has written and illustrated, and a number of the ones he has illustrated—I was excited to discover The Universe in You: A Microscopic Journey, which I somehow missed back in 2022, when it was first released. Needless to say, I was not disappointed! The narrative is engaging, thought-provoking and informative, truly taking the reader on a journey that explores a topic both tiny and vast. The accompanying artwork, created using watercolor, gouache and some digital elements, is lovely. I appreciated the note at the end, which discusses which parts of the illustrations are realistic, and which are not. Removing content from cells, in order to make them less crowded, and thereby enabling readers to better see what he is highlighting; using color, despite the fact that much of the microscopic world is colorless—these choices made sense to me. Recommended to fellow Jason Chin fans, and to anyone seeking children's books about the microscopic world around us that makes up the world we can see. show less