Ada Twist, scientist

PreK-Gr 2-Born with natural scientific curiosity, Ada Marie Twist tries to answer the "whys" of her world-and figure out the source of a particularly stinky stench-with boundless tenacity. Beaty demonstrates the importance of both rumination and hands-on messy work in scientific study. Unfortunately, this audio production is a bit of a mess. Groovy, sizzling, wikka-wokka keyboard music plays throughout the narration. This creates an odd pacing that is not always in sync with Bahni Turpin's narration. Turpin nearly shouts through a mostly rushed narration to be heard above the racket of the relentless music. Contrastingly, a couple of inexplicable long pauses in the narration break up the otherwise hurried flow. The forced rhyming text relies greatly on illustrator David Roberts's intricate and delightful artwork to convey meaning. VERDICT This disjointed audiobook could have used a producer with a heavier hand on the mixing console, but the popularity of Beaty's picture books all but demands purchase. Be sure to keep the print version on hand.-Jennifer Verbrugge, Minnesota Department of Education, Roseville © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.