Author: Carlo Frabetti
- Fiction
- Ediciones S.M.
- ISBN: 9788467553154
- Release Date: 01-20-2012
-Reviewed by: Teresa Mlawer
Carlos Frabetti was born in Bologna, Italy, and has resided in Spain since he was eight years old. He writes for children and adults and has won several literary awards. In addition to being an author and a scriptwriter, he is a mathematician who loves physics and science.
This is indeed a magical book. Magical, as described in the words of the author himself, is any book that catches our interest, sets in motion our imagination, and makes us dream whether we are sleeping or awake.
Alicia is a normal 11-year old girl who has an assignment from his teacher to write a science report, specifically about physics. After leaving school she sits in a park bench to ponder about her assignment when she is approached by a dwarf (this might not be politically correct in the US) who seems to be able to read her mind. He offers to help her with the school assignment. The following day when she gets home from school, she finds a book in her backpack that she was sure was not there before. The book was entitled El juguete de Galileo (Galileo’s toy) and explained how in 1609 Galileo had come across a curious toy that in time he turned into the world’s first telescope. Through the telescope he was able to discover that the Earth and all the other planets revolve around the Sun.
This book, written in a simple yet interesting language, explains that the concept of science was born many years before Galileo’s discovery. From early times, humans have always questioned our existence and that of our Planet and the Universe. The book introduces us to some of the great Greek philosophers and thinkers, who lived thousands of years ago, as Tales de Millet, Archimedes, and Democritus, to Renaissance geniuses such as Leonardo da Vinci, who opened the way for great scientists as Galileo and Newton who, in turn, opened the way for other great scientists as Lavoisier and Darwin, and one of the greatest women scientists, Madame Curie.
A truly fascinating book that will capture the imagination and interest of future scientists, who may venture to explore and discover many of the still unsolved mysteries of our world.
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