Gravity Is a Mystery

As mentioned in my review of Seymour Simon's Gorillas, my children's book reading is mostly in the realm of fiction, so Janet Hamilton's recent Horn Book article (What Makes a Good Science Book?) had me whipping out pencil and paper, and taking note. Franklyn M. Branley's Gravity Is a Mystery, originally published in 1970, and part of the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series, was one of the first titles she discussed.

An informative introduction to the idea of gravity for young children, this picture-book does not offer a specific definition, because - as the title would suggest - "gravity is a mystery." Instead, it takes a question any young child might ask - "What would happen if you dug a hole through the earth, and fell into it?" - show more and expands outward from there, discussing the effects of gravity, both planetary and celestial. This approach allows for a clear and concise discussion of what we do know, while also emphasizing that there is much that we don't: we know what gravity does, we just don't know what it is.

I liked this approach, which really makes science seem exciting, with new discoveries to be made, new knowledge to be gained. Republished in 2007, with colorful new illustrations by Edward Miller, Gravity Is a Mystery is a fun book, both visually appealing and intellectually stimulating. If I were a primary-school science teacher trying to explain this concept, this is the book to which I would turn! show less

Summary: A book where an adventurous scientist and his fun loving dog takes you through the motion of gravity and what it is. What goes up must come down, and that it is gravity that pulls everything from rocks to rockets toward the center of the earth. In the book gravity is explained, and told that gravity is a mystery but we know that it pulls everything, all the time.

Personal Reflection: I think this is a great book that utilizes cartoon-like illustrations to explain everyday things that occur and explain that those things happen due to gravity. It is easy to comprehend for young readers and the text makes the book very fun and exciting to read.

Curriculum Connection: This book can be used in a Kindergarten-3rd-grade science class show more when learning about gravity and what gravity is. It can also be extended to do some activities around gravity and predict what would happen, write a hypothesis, and test the conclusion. show less

Fun book teaching kids about gravity. Talks about how gravity changes depending on where you are. Tells the story as if the scientist character is actually talking to you. Pictures are bright and fun and book is goo for independent reading.

This is great book to use as an opener for a science lesson on gravity. This is a picture book that tells all about what gravity is and what it does.

A good picture book, but not great.