You Gotta Try This! Absolutely Irresistible Science [Hardcover]

Vicki Cobb (Author), Kathy Darling (Author), True Kelley (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up

Would you believe that you can turn a TV set into a copier machine? Burn a candle underwater? Give artificial respiration to a fly? Create a square egg? Turn a grape into a fireworks display? You can!

You Gotta Try This! is packed with fifty safe, hands-on science experiments that seem too incredible to be true -- but are. And they're so much fun to perform that you'll be trying them out again and again.

Written by Vicki Cobb and Kathy Darling, the award-winning authors of Don't Try This at Home! and four other best-selling children's science books, this high-energy activity book helps you discover just how amazing -- the world of science can be.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-8-Once again, the authors of Don't Try This at Home (Morrow, 1998) and Bet You Can! (Avon, 1983) make science fun. This book contains 50 experiments and activities that children can perform easily and enjoy doing. For each project, there is a list of the items needed, a clear explanation of the procedure, a safety notice (if necessary), and an interpretation of the principles involved. Chapters include "Curious Chemistry," "Freaky Fluids," and "Really Weird Stuff." Experiments range from making tonic water glow, to transforming the shape of an egg into a square, to causing a bar of soap to erupt like a volcano. Be forewarned, many of the activities will require adult assistance and supervision. The numerous black-and-white cartoons featuring enthusiastic young scientists add a light touch to the text and help to clarify the procedures.
Marion F. Gallivan, Gannon University, Erie, PA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Similar in format to the authors' other hands-on science books, such as Don't Try This at Home! (1998), this book offers "amazing scientific oddities and weird observations." Readers not only will learn how to resuscitate a nearly drowned fly, how to make a cubical hard-boiled egg, and how to power a fluorescent bulb using a balloon but they will also discover the science behind these and other phenomena. True Kelley's line-and-gray-wash illustrations clarify the directions and add their own good-natured visual appeal. A fine addition to science collections, especially where the earlier books have found an audience. Carolyn Phelan

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (June 23, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688157408
• ISBN-13: 978-0688157401
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,307,764 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Author answers a review, April 20, 2001

By 

Vicki Cobb (White Plains, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Gotta Try This! Absolutely Irresistible Science (Hardcover)

I am very sorry that the woman who tried to do the project we called "Flameless Fire" failed to get the expected results and condemned the entire book for it. I can assure you that it does work and I have used it in many teacher inservices. Perhaps she didn't mix in enough oxygen. In any case, the experiments I put in my books have been tested by me. But they are not "fool-proof" recipes. Conditions vary and often people don't follow directions. I also intend these experiments to be the beginning of an adventure into science, not just solve a problem for a kid who needs to fulfill an assignment.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another wonderful treat from Vicki Cobb!, August 6, 2007

By 

More0ver (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Gotta Try This! Absolutely Irresistible Science (Hardcover)

I don't know the authors, but I can't say enough about how fun and inspiring these books are for children - I recommend them to homeschoolers all the time. I wish I'd had books like this when I was little - my son had a ball with them, and they got him reading far more than he would have otherwise. I can see that the reviewer who had an unfortunate experience must have been under a lot of stress when she wrote the review, but I hope the family referred back to the book later and had some fun with it. I'd suggest that people take advantage of the cool feature Amazon offers where they can "look inside" or "search inside" the books and see for themselves what fun there is to be found in them!

1 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blood on Your Hands and Code Red, April 28, 2002

By 

Deb Anderson (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Gotta Try This! Absolutely Irresistible Science (Hardcover)

What a fun and easy way to encourage science for those of us who are "scientifically challenged!" Just a note: in my area Kinko's does NOT carry the Wausau Papers Astrobrights Galaxy Gold. They do carry other colors, but since Galaxy Gold was specified in these two experiments, I did not purchase another color. Did find it at Office Max. The "Blood on Your Hands" worked great and was really fun! Have tried "Code Red" twice unsuccessfully. Any suggestions? I really want this to work!