Dit boek vind ik erg mooi voor kinderen tussen de 3 en de 13 jaar zo'n beetje. Het lijkt me prachtig als basis voor de thema evolutie op school te bespreken, in een aantal weken. Het enige minpunt is dat op een gegeven moment wordt gezegt dat "wij" geen dieren met zijn maar mensen, terwijl wij mensen nog steeds dieren zijn. ( )

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss. ( )

It Started with a Big Bang by Floor Bal is a children's picture book that introduces readers to the history of the universe, starting with the big bang, up until life on earth now. Bal uses accessible and informative terms to explain something that can feel quite confusing to explain.

The illustrations are beautifully done and complement the text in such a powerful way. Bal shares all of this complex information in a reachable manner for readers, young and old. I read this book with our 9-year-old son, who has talked a lot about this theory at school, and we had the most thought-provoking conversation after reading this. It is so powerful to read this as an adult and then get the perspective of a child.

No matter your age, it is utterly fascinating to think we are all here because of this. Dal successfully shared some of the most complex ideas into a readable and approachable picture book that I know will become one of our favorites on our family bookshelf.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for an advanced copy of this book. ( )

This short book explains to children how the world was created according to the Big Bang theory. Each step, beginning to end, is broken down into understandable parts and is illustrated using Earth tones.
Although this is an informational book explaining a scientific theory, the author makes sure to use appropriate vocabulary for the intended audience. The art is fresh and appealing. All in all, I think a child would enjoy reading this book and have fun learning about how the world came to be. ( )

This book begins explaining how the universe came to look the way it does today. It all started with a big bang, and then we see many planets form including earth. We learn how stars can explode, leaving gas and stardust behind. This explains how the sun was formed with bit of stardust, gas, and rock sticking together. We learn how the moon was formed by rock crashing into earth. The book goes on to discuss the temperature of the earth and how water was formed.In earth's water, we see the beginning of evolution taking place. Some fish then evolve into amphibians and make their way onto earth's land. The book then discusses reptiles and dinosaurs. Suddenly, we see another rock hit earth, wiping out most of life. Millions of years later, mammals begin to live on earth. We see humans evolve from the mammals and form societies of their own. The societies then develop into the human world we live in today. All of evolution and life that we know of today is responsible because of a big bang long ago.
There are a few different science lessons found in this book. The first of which addresses space and the solar system. The next of which addresses how earth was formed. We then see a lesson on how life on earth began and evolved over time. We even learn a small portion on how dinosaurs become extinct due to another bang. I think this book would fit best with a lesson on evolution, but can be used for a number of science classes. The illustration also beautifully pair with the text on each page. This was an overall great reading experience. ( )