Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

The post–World War II years were the best and worst of times for the daughter of a cartographer to launch a career in oceanography. On the plus side, Marie Tharp, who shared her father’s passion for mapmaking, was entering a field alive with exciting debate over whether Earth’s surface was fixed or mobile; moreover, the technology existed for deep sea soundings to help determine the contours of the ocean floor. On the minus side, women were generally barred from maritime research, a hold-over from superstitious seafaring days in which women were regarded as bad luck aboard ships. Quietly determined to make this her life’s work, even if landbound, Tharp worked with fellow oceanographer Bruce Heezen to turn the data from depth measurements into the first ocean-floor maps; after interpreting their renderings, she garnered scientific support for the theory of plate tectonics. Burleigh does a credible job explaining the basics of taking soundings and the evidence the maps offered for supporting the idea that Atlantic plates separated along a rift valley along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The narration, in Tharp’s fictionalized voice, conveys both sad resignation at the limits placed on her career and pride at her significant contribution to a new worldview. Golds and blues of Colón’s signature illustrations work particularly well here, and he uses indoor scenes of the cartography lab to zoom in on the mapping process. A biographical note, selective glossary, print and online resources, and discussion and activity starters are included.