Seeds of Discovery

Starred review from October 15, 2024
Grades 4-6 *Starred Review* Growing up during the early 1900s, Barbara McClintock often ran with the boys in her Brooklyn neighborhood, joining in their tree-climbing as well as football and baseball games. At school, she was endlessly curious about her favorite subject: science. Fortunately, she never outgrew that fascination. The more she learned, the more questions she raised and, once she graduated from college, the more time and energy she put into finding the answers through basic research. Unconventional in her short haircuts and practical, masculine clothes, McClintock was sometimes excluded by her peers at universities, but she carried on her research into the location and workings of genes using maize plants. In 1983, she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. Alexander's approach is to present McClintock as a woman of great intelligence, independence, and drive while explaining the basics of genetics and DNA to give readers a fuller understanding of her work. Both the text and the back matter are informative, and the attractive digital illustrations are helpful in their visual interpretations of the concepts discussed. A little smaller in format and denser in text than a typical picture--book biography, the book offers science-lovers a challenging but rewarding introduction to a significant twentieth-century scientist and her accomplishments.

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Starred review from October 15, 2024
A winning profile of a stubbornly self-motivated researcher who, through decades of study, revolutionized our understanding of genetics. Acclaimed (eventually) by the Nobel Prize Committee for making "one of the two great discoveries of our times in genetics" (the other was the structure of DNA, discovered by others), Barbara McClintock was the very model of a maverick scientist. "It begins," Alexander writes, "with a girl who loves science," studies biology and plays jazz banjo in college, exchanges dresses for more practical trousers, and goes on to parlay an early fascination with the chromosomes found in corn cells into a lifelong study that culminates in finding the "jumping genes" ("transposons") that play vital roles in genetic variance between generations. The author explains McClintock's achievements in clear, nontechnical language and, after acknowledging her death at age 90 in 1992, goes on to highlight some of the advances, from the Human Genome Project to the development of CRISPR technology, that have resulted from her work. Along with close-ups of corn and chromosomes, Santo offers gracefully composed views of McClintock addressing colleagues and welcoming racially diverse groups of students to join her for tea and brownies. Most often, however, she's in solitary absorption, hard at work in labs and cornfields. What will remain with readers is a memorable picture of an independent woman's life in science, as well as a clear understanding of her contributions and a vivid sense of the joy she took in making them. Absorbing and inspirational. (timeline, glossary, source notes, bibliography, photo credits)(Nonfiction. 8-12)

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Starred review from December 2, 2024
Alexander (All in a Drop) uses short chapters and quoted material to chronicle the exuberant life and work of Nobel Prize–winning scientist and cytogeneticist Barbara McClintock (1902–1992). Starting with the subject’s childhood having been reared by a mother intent on seeing her “strange” daughter wed rather than attending college, the author details McClintock’s experiences as one of very few female botany PhD students at Cornell University as well as her work at various institutions, including one where she is told by a supervisor, “If you ever get married, you’ll be fired.” Using anecdotes from the figure’s life and breakthroughs in DNA research, digestible text relates historical and scientific concepts—explanations of gene mutation, the status of female education in the early 1900s—that expand the scope of McClintock’s professional journey. Santo (Merry and Hark) utilizes a muted palette of teals, pinks, and browns and a folk-art style to highlight the principles of botany and showcase the whimsical nature of an intellectual absorbed in her work. Highly readable and engaging, this edifying profile connects McClintock’s early struggles and well-deserved fame in her 80s with contemporary genetic engineering advancements. A timeline, glossary, and bibliography conclude. Ages 8–12.

March 1, 2025
"It might seem unfair to reward a person for having so much pleasure over the years." Geneticist Barbara McClintock's (1902-1992) statement upon receiving the Nobel Prize in the category of Physiology or Medicine in 1983 sets the tone for Alexander's accomplished biography of an extraordinary life in science. The account begins with McClintock's childhood, when she showed early interest in and capacity for science at a time when few women were encouraged to do so. Throughout her career, despite sexism and others' misperceptions, McClintock persisted and thrived, most contentedly at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island, where as a research scientist she studied the genetics of maize and discovered "jumping genes," the relocation of DNA segments across the genome. Alexander's descriptions of laboratory and field work are detailed and effective at illustrating scientific experimentation. Most impressive is her equal attention to the conceptual practices of science, such as developing questions and models, scientific argumentation, and the importance of communicating ideas for scrutiny within the scientific community. Santo's digital illustrations use pastel shades to portray McClintock outdoors for work and for nature walks, in the laboratory, and presenting her research at conferences. Text boxes throughout provide background biology concepts and introduce important historical contributors such as Gregor Mendel and Rosalind Franklin. An illustrated timeline of McClintock's major life events, a glossary, and source notes are appended. Danielle J. Ford

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