My Antarctica

Starred review from January 1, 2024
A lively and revealing visit to our remotest continent. Childhood dreams of being an explorer went nowhere, Neri writes, but as an adult, he had a chance to realize his ambitions by taking a grant-funded trip to Antarctica. Along with other artists and writers, he joined researchers ("mostly white, but I see a few folks of color like me") living and working at McMurdo Station to record discoveries and impressions. Funny and informative as his comments are, though, it's his photos, which are joined by others drawn from a multitude of sources and mounted here as snapshots, that really bring the forbidding locale to life...particularly since Wilkin enhances many of them with superimposed cartoon images that catch the author looking on as scientists engage in a range of specifically described projects, meeting penguins, imagining flights over rapidly melting ice, urgently surveying a photo gallery of outdoor loos (brrr), and, all too soon, cheerily waving goodbye. Maps, galleries of rugged vehicles and outerwear, lists of things visitors to the station will find (a coffee shop, an ATM) and won't (polar bears, guns), and multiple closing factual roundups will give armchair travelers all the more incentive to put trips to the still largely unexplored continent on their bucket lists. Warm memories of really cold places and the people who brave them for science. (author's note, recommended reading and viewing, photo credits) (Illustrated nonfiction. 7-11)

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February 19, 2024
With down-to-earth prose, Neri narrates an eye-opening trip to Antarctica in this scrapbook-like travelog. Opening remarks relate the author’s longtime dreams of exploration and unlikely path to visiting Antarctica through the National Science Foundation—as a children’s book creator writing about the experience for young audiences. Throughout, an easy, candid tone keeps the focus on self-aware observations, touching occasionally on the complex science occurring around him as well as safety training and tense moments encountered (“that time we were trapped in a helicopter over the frozen sea”). Comics-style panels, maps, and diagrams help communicate environmental extremes, while numerous lists offer a kid’s-eye view of the place, including vehicles, uniforms (depicted with paper-doll tabs), toilets, “icebergs shaped like things” (a big head, a couch), and “weird things I saw” (a rock concert). Wilkin’s wash- and pencil-style digital sketches of Neri and others (“mostly white, but I see a few folks of color like me”) mingle among dozens of photos for an on-the-go effect that keeps pages turning in this modern account of an extraordinarily extreme landscape. Extensive back matter concludes. Ages 7–10.

March 1, 2024

Gr 2-5-Antarctica conjures up pictures of extreme environments and desolate landscapes. For Neri, winner of a Coretta Scott King Honor for Yummy, traveling to Antarctica fulfilled a childhood dream of exploring a far-off land vastly different from his Los Angeles upbringing. As a child, he was always interested in science and the natural world, but struggled with those subjects in school. He did not think he could ever explore a purely scientific place like Antarctica. However, his successful career as a filmmaker and YA author allowed him to apply for and receive a grant from the National Science Foundation. Neri joins the ranks of famous artists and authors who have documented Antarctic life (human and natural) for the non-scientific world. His first thoughts upon landing were that he was on a different planet, a very white planet. He discovers a harsh environment but welcoming people. The accessible and conversational tone, and beautifully crisp photos, tell the story of his remarkable expedition. Wilkin's cartoon line drawings overlay the photos and bring depth and humor to the pictures. Sprinkled throughout are tidbits about Antarctica and the lives of the 5,000 people who call it their temporary home. How old is that seal mummy? How does everyone eat? How do people travel when it is so cold? And what happens to everyone's poop? Neri's quasi-journal is interesting, though perhaps not quite organized or detailed enough for reports. VERDICT A compelling but additional purchase, unless inspirational material is needed about fulfilling childhood dreams.-Lisa Crandall

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Starred review from February 15, 2024
Grades 3-6 *Starred Review* Realizing his childhood dream of becoming an explorer while encouraging readers to share in it, Neri investigates the fantastical, foreboding desert of Antarctica in a dynamically illustrated travelogue with appeal as vast as that inhospitable terrain. Neri spent weeks at the McMurdo Station as a National Science Foundation "artist grantee." Capitalizing on opportunities around that "main hub for U.S. science in Antarctica," Neri pours his artistic skills and obvious interest into serving as a "science translator" for youth. Through the text's easy banter and welcoming tone, Neri captures the collegial, camp-like atmosphere of the research base, making its geographic remoteness unexpectedly accessible. Although notable historic explorers appear for context, Neri emphasizes the staggering variety of modern research projects and practical details of daily existence (including toilet designs) in order to safely execute them. Wilkin and Neri partnered on Grand Theft Horse (2018) and reunite here. Wilkin digitally overlays cartoon images of Neri--imagine Trixie in Mo Willems' Knuffle Bunny (2004)--and comic-style details onto insightful, often stunning photographs above and below the ice, welding humor to stoke a powerful sense of place. With strong back matter, this high-interest nonfiction field guide celebrates curiosity and offers a fascinating snapshot of daily life in an icy wonderland. Recommended for all collections.

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