Plastic Ahoy! Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Reviewed by: Bernie Alie - Kennebunk Free Library, Kennebunk, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: June 8, 2014

Review

Focuses on 3 graduate students aboard a research ship studying the North Pacific Central Gyre, one of the recently discovered accumulations of plastic garbage found in the world's oceans. Accurately demonstrating the use of the scientific method, we get an overview of what each of them studied, how their interests developed, tools used, & hypotheses researched. Photographs taken during the trip bring the reader aboard, & changing perspectives get you down on your hands & knees examining the finds. Easy sentence structure is appropriate to the target audience. Diagrams of the cycle of the food web (p.22) & photosynthesis (p.26) are counter clockwise which may cause some confusion. How the amount of plastic in the gyre is calculated is started, but not completed, except to say "that's a lot of plastic 1,000 miles or more from land" (p.18). After gathering data, one researcher, Darcy, is told by her advisor to change the focus of her study, but we are not told why. Overall, an excellent introduction to scientific research in the real world.

Overall Book Score: excellent