LitPick Review
"Samantha Hansen Has Rocks In Her Head" by Nancy Viau is a fun chapter book for young readers. It recounts the scientifically passionate life of little Samantha, a tomboy in the fourth grade. She goes on a class trip to a cave, performs at a talent show, sees the Grand Canyon, and develops her first crush. In general, she is in love with rocks and earth science. Aside from the main plot events, there are also parts where Sam needs anger management, learns to get along with her sister, discovers facts about her late father.
Opinion:
The love of science is portrayed greatly and may inspire children to make little science journals of their own. However, the stereotype that girls are not good at math is subtly implied. In the book, Sam has problems with fractions and writes them backwards (which may confuse young readers). Also, when the journal entries are written out, some words are misspelled or have incomplete descriptions with questions. Although it may be realistic since the journals are supposed to be written by a fourth grader, they do not help young readers pedagogically.
