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Zero! takes readers on a whirlwind picture-book tour through the history of a mathematical concept.
Zero! The Number That Almost Wasn’t by Sarah Albee, illustrated by Chris Hsu. Charlesbridge, 2025. 40 pages.
- Reading Level: Picture books, ages 8-10
- Recommended For: Ages 4-10
The concept of “nothing” should be easy to understand—but it isn’t. Counting objects has been a human accomplishment from the earliest times, but when it came to calculating ever-larger numbers, the Greeks (for all their sophistication) didn’t have a good system. Nor the Romans (for all their engineering skill). Farther east, the Arabic number system, which actually originated in India, provided a deceptively simple means of manipulating numbers. Even then, it was another few centuries before the concept of “zero” gained traction, and western mathematicians tended to be suspicious of the newfangled concept. But once widely accepted (thank you, Finbonacci!), the unassuming little “0” launched a scientific revolution.
Zero is a character in the story, appearing on every page spread with appropriate emotional reactions. The illustrations are worth a second or third look for the detail and cultural references they contain; don’t miss the illustrator’s notes in the appendix. Other useful appendices include definitions, the origin of the word “zero,” and a timeline. The book reminds us to take nothing for granted.
Bottom Line: An entertaining introduction to a vital mathematical idea.
Recommended Reading at Redeemed Reader
- Review: The Sir Cumference books are lots of fun.
- Review: Who was Fibonacci? A middle-grade novel, The 14 Fibs of Gregory K, will answer that question?
- Review: Big Book of Math is exactly what it says it is, but from a Christian perspective.
- Resource: The Marvelous Math for Middle Grades is a fun booklist all about math.
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