Science Geek Sam and his Secret Logbook

I say it at once: this is a beautiful book, suitable for children and adults also.
It tells the story of Sam and his findings from the day, when his school - rather, its bike shed - received an extraterrestrial “visitor”. In a lively and even humorous way, Sam notes his adventures and investigations, and the things he learned about the universe and the earth. In particular, he has to deal with the debate between evolutionism and creationism, with different reasons on both sides (and some wise remarks).
I thank Lion Hudson Plc and NetGalley for providing this book, and once again highly recommend it.

Can Evolution and Theology Coexist?
The shed holding students’ bike exploded and the principal sent the students home early. However, there is no one at home waiting for Sam so he has to stay at school. Luckily, his Uncle Jack shows up to investigate what may have been a meteorite strike. Later, Uncle Jack talks about the universe in Sam’s class. It created a controversy since Jack goes to a Christian School that is not supportive of the Big Bang Theory. Visits from a horse-loving mother and a vicar leave more questions than answers. The solution is a five-day class trip to find some answers to the conflict between evolution and god’s existence. On the trip, they look at landmark, the stars, experiment with DNA, and learn about Darwinism. According to the authors, science and theology can coexist. There are numerous sidebars on the science topics with additional information, activities, and websites to investigate.

I received this book free through Net Galley. Although encouraged as a courtesy to provide feedback to the publisher, I was under no obligation to write a review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

This book probably has a very limited readership amongst parents and educators determined that science and a christian god can co-exist.
I think a similar book would have traction, but only if it were to embrace the possibility of more "creation" stories and the possibility of many alternative views of god and spirituality so as to be more universal in its appeal. Its the kind of book that has its place, but not in its current form.

Told chronologically Science Geek Sam is a story that explores peer relationships and includes fun scientific facts! The story is engaging for kids and appropriate for the recommended age group.

Corien Oranje and Cees Dekker had laudable goals in the creation of Science Geek Sam. There are many inquisitive minds out there who have been told to believe in God- no questions asked - and yet they get exposed to information about things like that makes them wonder. And it can be hard to reconcile the two. People are very much "Only this way, or only that way." Especially when it comes to something like religion and science
But it's possible for there to be a middle ground. And that's what Science Geek Sam is all about. That, and a young boy's celebration of all things science. This book is packed with lots of cool tidbits of information about things from meteors to DNA. And the layout of the book is one that's becoming more common. Parents or kids with a QR scanner on their phone will find several opportunities to utilize it to view things online. Where codes aren't accessible, text links are. The authors do a great job of linking lots of sites and videos so that kids can further their knowledge beyond what is presented in the book. This interactivity adds an additional level to the book that I really like.

I like Sam. He was curious, intelligent little boy who really just wanted answers to his questions. I felt for him as he tried to reconcile the information that he was getting from different people. I was happy that he had people in his life that were happy to try to answer his questions and guide him. It balanced out the people that were just pig-headed "The book and nothing but the book!" And that's how life is. Most children don't get to grow up in an environment where everyone around them encourages them to think, explore, and reach their own conclusions.


Unfortunately, I don't see this book ever having a mass market appeal. It's got a very specific goal, and most parents I know aren't really interested in buying a book that shows there can be a middle ground between religion and science.

Personally, I'm just happy to see people trying to reconcile religion and science and get it through to kids early on. While my non-religious inclinations make me an adamant disbeliever in all things omniscient being, I'm perfectly fine with finding a platform to meet believers on. Faith and facts can be friends, even if they have to agree to disagree on a few things.

Quick Summary: Hilarious, entertaining, and downright fun!
Rating: 4/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: Y
Humor/Wit: Yes
Re-read: Yes
Want More: Yes
Source: NetGalley

The book starts out with a fire drill because the bike shed had been totally destroyed.
Sam and his Uncle stay around after the accident and he finds out the bike shed was hit by a meteorite!
Sam's uncle gives him a telescope and he immediately begins to point out and explain what constellations and sky maps are and how to identify them correctly in the sky.
Sam's teacher Mr. Nolan, decides to start a "people Library" which means that a relative of a student can come and speak about a topic that they are knowledgeable about.
This is a good idea until people come to speak and talk about "the Big Bang theory" and the Creation story and insist that both of them could have happened.
There are opposing viewpoints by students and parents, so the teacher decides to take the students out for a week long break called a "Residential" to discover and prove which of these is true. The students also have to find enough dead animals to get a free pass to their the Natural History Museum so they search for dead animals and put out notices for people to give the students their dead animals.
Sam is very smart, and he enjoys telling others what he knows, he even tells the YouTube sources for his information.
You will have to read the book yourself to find out what the students discover!

My son will love this book (when he starts to read) as much as I did when I read it. Suitable for all ages.

Funny, fascinating, and thought-provoking, Sam’s logbook includes diary entries, fact boxes, weblinks, QR codes, emails, and illustrations.

Introducing science concepts to kids in a way that is fun and entertaining, a way that encourages them to explore and ask questions is important. This book does a decent job of achieving those ends. Its not the most compelling book I've ever read. And I'd have preferred for the science explanations to be a more organic part of the plot rather than the plot being a basic tool for sharing some science concepts.

I was initially quite excited to read this book, I thought it sounded interesting. It is a lovely book, but it took me quite a while to read. It started out strong but I felt it lost its way after a while.

The main character Sam was quite endearing, inquisitive and a little nerdy. The day got quite interesting for Sam when a meteorite crashes into the school bike shed, this raises a lot of questions for Sam’s school class. Sam’s class explore faith, struggling to understand whether you can believe in both God and the Big Bang.

I think this book would be good to read together with a parent so you can guide your children through the topics that arise in the book and any questions your child might have.

*thank you to NetGalley and Lion Hudson IP Limited for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

3.5 stars.
What a fun read! I really enjoyed this. Science, religion and humor in one. I can see middle grade boys being the target audience. Plus it holds your attention quite well.

I read this with my 8 year old son and we really enjoyed all the links and extra things to do outside of just reading the book. I think it's great to have such a fun book aimed at children that explores ideas and allows for discovery... we enjoyed it together and it's nice to find a book that appeals to adults and children.

This is a fun read sharing creation and scientific theories.

Sam is a ten or eleven year old (based on highest grade in primary school) who loves science. His Uncle Jack is a science professor. When a meteorite crashes on the bike shed at Sam’s school, Uncle Jack is one of the experts called in to investigate. Many questions arise from the meteorite crash and Sam’s teacher, Mr. Nolan, decides to set up a “People Library” to bring in people with expertise to share knowledge and answer questions for the students.

Uncle Jack is one of the speakers who comes in to explain the scientific aspects of the meteorite, planets and the universe. In the process he describes the science of the Big Bang. However, Sam’s school is a Christian school and some of the parents are alarmed that the students are being taught science facts that might conflict with the beliefs they have been taught. The students hear from other people about God’s Creation but there are still conflicting arguments.

Mr. Nolan arranges a week-long camping trip for the class where the students can visit a museum, a planetarium and get some hands-on experience as well as researching their questions.
Not everyone is thrilled with the idea of “camping out”. When they go, there are conflicts among the students, but they work through issues and end up having a great week.

The story is told in a very fun fashion through Sam’s journaling, narrating and email exchanges, mostly with Uncle Jack. There are fun interactions and incidents with the students that add a personal element of appropriate aged fun.

Sam is a curious ‘science geek’ and the book is packed with tidbits of information about things such as meteors, stars, fossils and even DNA. Throughout the book there are weblinks and scan codes to explore the facts and theories that are discussed. I thought this was very clever and hope young people would take advantage to see the additional resources.

The authors do an engaging job of sharing scientific arguments and Christian foundations of creation. The authors make a presentation that allows a merger of Biblical and scientific elements, allowing for God to have created the world over a long period of time. The overall package encourages young people to be open minded in their studies of creation and science.

The book combines the scientific knowledge and evangelist faith of Cees Dekker with the fun writing skills of child author Corien Oranje. The illustrations by Perta van Rijssen are basic, fun and fitting to add to the story. I don’t agree totally with the science that is presented but I thought the method of sharing the arguments was fun and thought provoking.

Source: NetGalley.