11 Experiments That Failed

11 Experiments That Failed by Jenny Offill. Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter. 2011. Random House. 40 pages.

Question: Can a kid make it through the winter eating only snow and ketchup?
Hypothesis: Ketchup and snow are the only food groups a kid needs.
What You Need: Ketchup, Snow
What to Do: 1. Make snowball, 2. Dip in ketchup, 3. Eat, 4. Repeat three times a day until spring.
What Happened: Stomachache, brain freeze, love of ketchup wavering.

And that is just the first (failed) experiment our passionate young scientist is trying...

I just LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this one. I did. I loved it because it was funny. It was just hilarious. It was fun and quirky and unexpectedly wonderful. (Though if you're familiar with 17 Things I'm Not Allowed To Do Anymore, then it may not be so unexpected. I'm not completely sure I've read the first book with this oh-so-quirky, oh-so-trouble-prone heroine, so I plan on reading it soon--just in case!)

There were MANY great experiments in the book. My personal favorite just happens to be:

Question: Can a live beaver be ordered through the mail?
Hypothesis: A live beaver can be ordered through the mail.
What You Need: Five dollar bill, envelope, stamp.
What to Do: 1. Fill out mail-order beaver form. 2. Attach five dollar bill, 3. Place form in stamped envelope. 4. Mail.
What Happened: Allowance withheld until further notice. House declared No Beaver zone. 

All eleven experiments are great. And the book is just FANTASTIC. I just loved, loved, loved it cover to cover. I would definitely recommend this one!!!

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 3 out of 5
Total: 8 out of 10

© 2011 Becky Laney of Young Readers