Exactly how are cars painted? And how do octopuses squirt ink? Esbaum has the answers (or, at least, the simple versions of the answers) to these and 52 other questions. This combines straightforward information; large, full-color photographs (check out the close-up of a cold germ!); and bright, eye-catching text bubbles and sidebars; and the end result is an attractive book that many young researchers will want to revisit. Questions are divided between six sections Around the Home, Coming and Going, My Body, The Animal Kingdom, The Great Outdoors, and Food and each section has its own try-it-at-home activity and quick game. Back matter includes tips to help parents extend lessons, a small glossary, a list of additional resources, and an index. Although some answers may be a bit too simple, resulting in follow-up questions, the format is visually appealing, and the text has enough interesting facts to surprise anyone. Who could resist?--Linsenmeyer, Erin Copyright 2016 Booklist

From how a hair dryer works to how cheese, chocolate, and ice cream are made, Esbaum offers simple answers to over 50 common questions. Some of her answers are a little too simple: it's hard to see any real difference between the two types of doorbells she describes, not quite right to characterize what the taste buds sense as "sweet, salty, bitter, sour, or just plain yucky," and dead wrong to claim that when a rocket "is high enough to have escaped Earth's gravity it has reached space." Moreover, though grouped into six broad categories such as "Food" and "The Animal Kingdom," within their rubrics, the questions and their arrangement both feel entirely arbitrary. Still, the big, square format and many bright color photos of animals, objects, and young people at work and play will encourage extended browsing. Each section includes one or more simple activities, such as a yummy demonstration of tectonic mountain-building using moistened graham crackers over a bed of whipped cream, and also a pattern recognition game that builds on previously presented facts. A scattershot assortment, easy on the eyes if only fitfully valuable for giving young inquiring minds the straight dope. (bibliography, index, parent tips) (Nonfiction. 6-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.