Our students absolutely loved One Day a Dot by Ian Lendler. It was a great addition to our elementary classrooms, but our middle school students found it to be pretty amazing. In our STEM time, it was used often as a starting point to ask questions.

Almost no subject is too much for a children’s storybook, with the right approach, and One Day a Dot is proof. It tackles the formation of the universe in simple, understandable terms, with lovely images following from the Big Bang through the evolution of humanity and civilization.

A dot bursts into light and life. It’s given feelings by the author, which brings the subject from a galactic to a more personal scale. Following pages flow from protozoa to sea life to evolution into dinosaurs. It’s amazing how much was put into these forty pages, when one thinks of the billions of years portrayed.

The design elements, in muted colors of orange, teal, and mustard, give the pages a mid-century modern look that creates an air of being outside of time well-suited to the content. The attractiveness of the art and the simple poetry of the text prevent re-reads from becoming boring. A timeline at the end covers key eras and epochs in the history of the earth.

One Day a Dot is a captivating way to respond to a child’s question of “where did it all come from?”

I'm impressed with the way that Lendler managed to take the whole scope of the Big Bang and Evolutionary theory and sum it up in a single, visual, narrative. THis is a very reader friendly way to introduce some very complex issues.

This book provided an interesting viewpoint. I quite enjoyed the artwork, but I did really follow or enjoy the idea it was promoting. This book is good for explaining the science behind some ideas.

One Day a Dot: The Story of You, the Universe, and Everything is a picturebook by Ian Lender, with artwork by Braden Lamb and Shelli Paroline. It is currently scheduled for release On April 17 2018. This book is an attempt to simplify and introduce the Big Bang theory and evolution to a young audience. Starting with one tiny dot and continuing through the Big Bang to the rise of human societies, the story of our universe is told in simple and vivid terms. But the biggest question of all cannot be answered: Where did that one dot come from?

One Day a Dot: The Story of You, the Universe, and Everything is a nice start to a conversation about the universe and science that explores what we are made of, and how the world was formed and has changed. I liked the simple version of the Big Bang, the see of dots as the building blocks of matter is very well done, and I think that it gets the basics of how our solar system and life on Earth began across to readers of all ages. However, I thought the Evolution bit was problematic, mainly because of the way it showed only one mammal surviving extinction when most people, including children, are aware of the fact that some currently living reptiles and birds are actual descendants of the creature alike prior to the event that triggered the mass extinction. However, I think that this book might help start a discussion and help interest young minds into exploring the physics and science that is currently trying to answer the big question, and prove many of the theories definitively. With all that said, I thought the illustrations were great, and did a wonderful job of illustrating the theories and explanations.

I just read One Day A Dot from Ian Lender and it was great. This book is a great, and easy, way to start explaining the Big Bang and evolution to kids. The art was absolutely phenomenal as well, everything was so bright. This is a great addition to all of the other books that have come out from First Second.

This one's one of my standout favorites. Author Ian Lendler and illustrators Shelli Paroline and Braden Lamb drill down the history of everything to one humble dot. From one dot's excited burst of joy comes the Big Bang, bringing new dots together to form planets and, eventually, life. The dots are animated, dancing, playing, even running away from other dots that want to eat them! The artwork is bright with a retro feel and uses the dot theme as a focal point through the story, gently leading readers on a trip through time and space. It's a simplified look at the formation of the universe, but works nicely for younger readers. Give this one to kids who like Stacy McAnulty's Earth: My First 4.5 Billion Years, and Dominic Walliman's Professor Astro Cat books, published by Nobrow.

“One day a dot appeared. And it was so excited to be there that it burst.” Ian Lendler brings Evolution to life for our youngest readers in One Day a Dot. The vibrant illustrations are rendered in pencil and ink with a Sumi Dry Brush in Clip Studio Paint. The color extends from edge to edge Simple explanations of complex processes engage the reader throughout the text. The ending acknowledges that we still don’t know where the first dot came from. A creative introduction to evolution. The book includes a timeline outlining each era.. Recommended.

Anyone who says that the Big Bang can't be explained simply, hasn't seen this book yet. Portraying the beginning of the universe as a simple dot that explodes from excitement, the tale traces history from that one event to the present day. Along the way the concepts of evolution, adaptation, and even the extinction of the dinosaurs are all explained. The illustrations are full of dots that slowly change their shapes from amoebas to fishes, reptiles, mammals, and finally humans. Scenes show small green dots playing "a game called Catch the Light," which is followed by "Eat or Be Eaten" -
otherwise known as a food chain. The first little mammal is shown as a tiny mouse-like critter who manages to survive the ELE that wipes out the dinosaurs.

At the end of the book is a timeline showing everything from the formation of the first stars, to photosynthesis, homo sapiens, and the current epoch. For teachers looking for a way to introduce all these concepts, this is a great new title to add to their collections. The amazingly simple text does a wonderful job of explaining the concepts covered, while the images offer great support to make everything visually clear. Highly recommended for elementary school libraries and classrooms.

I received an advance copy from the publisher for review purposes.

This was a fantastic introduction to the big bang and the beginnings of life right up to present day for young children in a graphic novel. I realize in saying that, it sounds like a lot, but this does a brilliant job of whittling it down to just the basics and using simple language that elementary age children would understand! And yet in its simplicity it was so amazing! It just has to be read.

The Big Bang
Planets
Single-celled marine life
Animals leave the water
Dinosaurs
Mass extinction
...all the way to modern human life is covered in this simple yet powerful book.

The fascinations with creation evolves from one dot to present day in a powerfully evocative progression of color saturated illustrations accompanied by informative scientifically relevant facts that guide the reader through the history of the universe. A deeply informative and engaging book that will delight a wide range of readers.

Definitely need a book like this! I have tried to explain this to my own children but Lendler makes this easy to understand both in text and visually. It's an excellent resource for those wishing to teach children about the big bang theory.

Amazing. I didn't think it would be possible to explain the big bang theory to a young child, but you can now! I love the illustrations and how the book ends with a good discussion point for children and parents.

Wow! I love, love, love this book. It is so beautiful, both the words and illustrations. This is a perfect introduction to the concepts of the Big Bang and Evolution for young readers. It is simply but effectively told and will provide a wonderful foundation on which to grow future science-minded and inquisitive citizens.
I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.