The aquanaut
When I was young, the world seemed too dangerous. Everything was too hard. I was too young. Places were too far away. But that was okay because I had a big imagination... Through beautiful, spare text, Jill Heinerth tells her story about a girl who feels too young, too little and too far away from her dreams. But you don't need to wait to grow up. It doesn't take much to imagine all the things you can do and be. What if your bedroom were a space station? What would it be like to have flippers or tusks? In your own home you can explore new worlds and meet new friends. Jaime Kim's luminous art transports readers back and forth through time to see how Jill's imagination as a young girl laid the pathway to her accomplishments and experiences as an underwater explorer.
Available Copies by Location
Location | |
---|---|
Community Centre | Checked out |
Victoria | Available |
Browse Related Items
Subject |
Heinerth, Jill > Juvenile literature. Scuba divers > Canada > Biography > Juvenile literature. |
Genre |
Autobiographies. Picture books. |
- ISBN: 9780735263635
- Physical Description 1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 27 cm
- Publisher [Place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], 2021.
Additional Information
Kirkus Review
The Aquanaut
Kirkus Reviews
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
As a child, the world seems very dangerous for young Jill. How does her imagination lead her to become an underwater explorer? In the spirit of girl power, this title reflects on the rare life of a female cave diver and underwater photographer. Aquanaut and author Heinerth looks back at the childhood memories that shaped her career. The pages alternate between depictions of the round little girl and the adult diver in parallel situations. The young White girl, with brown bangs held back by a red bandana, gives a hand to someone who fell off a bike. The accompanying first-person narration states that little Jill "wanted to help others." A turn of the page shows the grown-up diver releasing a trapped turtle from entanglement in a net. With double-page spreads brimming with color and cheer, the illustrations tie the motivations of a timid child to the underwater fulfillment of the adult. Moving back and forth in time, the narrative describes how the little girl strove to conquer her fears. Her success as an adult proves that she did. While the illustrations entertain, however, the text examples are a little ho-hum, ceding to the illustrations the task of conveying the magic of cave diving. Luckily, the author's note helps to mitigate that, and accompanying photographs pack some punch. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10.25-by-19-inch double-page spreads viewed at 13.5% of actual size.) With delightful illustrations, this is a calming way to inspire timid children to realize exciting dreams. (Picture book. 5-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Publishers Weekly Review
The Aquanaut
Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Cave diving aquanaut and underwater photographer Heinerth pens this picture book autobiography, which juxtaposes her childhood dreams with her adult achievements. As a child limited by fear and lack of agency, Heinerth supplemented with her "big imagination." "I wanted to float/ through space and see the moon up close" reads one spread, as little Jill stares up at a moon pendant. The next spread shows adult Jill, equipped with diving gear, swimming among a luminous bloom of moon jellyfish. The parallel continues throughout, while light-filled watercolor and digital illustrations by Kim conjure actual locations from Heinerth's photographs. Back matter includes an author's note with the aforementioned photos. Ages 3--7. (Jan.)