Kate Hosford

A little girl named Uma wonders how many stars there are in the sky and muses:

“Maybe the number was as big as infinity. I started to feel very, very small. How could I even think about something as big as infinity?”

She asks her friends, family, and teachers how big they think infinity is.

Uma did have other concerns. It seemed like, with all that contemplation of the mysteries of the universe, no one was noticing her new red shoes. But that night, her grandma said:

“Uma, I meant to tell you this morning - those are the most beautiful shoes I have ever seen!”

And suddenly Uma understood something about infinity: “Right then I knew - my love for her was as big as infinity.”

That night, when Uma looked at the stars cuddled up with her grandma, the sky didn’t seem so huge and cold anymore: “Now it was more like a sparkly blanket, covering us both.”

The author reports that she interviewed children in kindergarten through second grade to learn what they thought about infinity, and their answers feature in this book. She found that children understood infinity is an idea as well as a number. She concludes with the thought:

“How many ways are there to imagine infinity? An infinite number. Just close the book and begin.”

Charming and whimsical illustrations (and great endpapers!) by Gabi Swiatkowska creatively illustrate the many ideas offered to Uma about the nature of infinity. Readers 5 and up will be entertained by the pictures as well as the story.

Evaluation: This story should inspire conversations about Life, the Universe, and Everything. Adults will be intrigued as well - I was reminded of the debate in the great science fiction movie “Interstellar” about love, and what a powerful force it is - an idea echoed in this story.… (mehr)

I really liked this book because of the illustrations it had as well as the story within the book. It talked about infinity and this girl who was trying to understand what infinity was. She asked different people throughout her day what infinity meant to them and she wondered about it the whole day. By the end of the book, she realized that the love for her grandma was infinite and it comforted her. I would recommend this book for primary students. I think it would be good to read before talking about infinity in a classroom and is a good segue into math.… (mehr)