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We Go Way Back
An entertaining yet scientifically accurate exploration of the origin of life on Earth from the award-winning author of Do Not Lick This Book and the bestselling illustrator of Who Am I?
What is life?
How did it start?
Long, long ago, no one knows exactly where or when, a tiny bubble formed that was a Little Bit Different. It was the first living cell. Everyone's ancestor.
And so the story of life begins �
In this visually stunning and brilliantly devised picture book, Idan Ben-Barak and Philip Bunting lead us through the origin of life on our planet, and how an odd little bubble gave rise to the incredible web of life on Earth.
What is life?
How did it start?
Long, long ago, no one knows exactly where or when, a tiny bubble formed that was a Little Bit Different. It was the first living cell. Everyone's ancestor.
And so the story of life begins �
In this visually stunning and brilliantly devised picture book, Idan Ben-Barak and Philip Bunting lead us through the origin of life on our planet, and how an odd little bubble gave rise to the incredible web of life on Earth.
36 pages, Hardcover
Published August 3, 2021
82 people want to read
About the author
Idan Ben-Barak
10books40followersI write science books, usually for children; they've been translated into about twenty languages and won some awards.
I live in Melbourne, Australia with my family. Sometimes, after they go to bed, I play my guitar a little.
I have degrees in microbiology and in the history and philosophy of science, a diploma in library studies, and a day job that has very little to do with any of the above.
You can also find me on (too often for my own good), my (occasionally) and (rarely).
I live in Melbourne, Australia with my family. Sometimes, after they go to bed, I play my guitar a little.
I have degrees in microbiology and in the history and philosophy of science, a diploma in library studies, and a day job that has very little to do with any of the above.
You can also find me on (too often for my own good), my (occasionally) and (rarely).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
March 20, 2023
What a thoughtful, beautiful, and succinct introduction to the Big Questions about life, the universe, and everything.
January 8, 2022
A picture book aimed at young readers that attempts to answer (or at least explain) some of the biggest questions we all have - What is life? How did it start? Where did we come from?
It does a pretty good job of exploring how we currently understand life to have originated, and I love how the illustrations and the formatting/style of the text adds to the experience. However, given that we don’t really have life pinned down scientifically, explaining it to kids in a picture book proves tricky. Some parts of this are a little complex, and others feel like they raise more questions rather than answering them. Perhaps all of that is just impossible to avoid with a book like this! Still a great option for kids who seem particularly interested in the big questions.
The fold out tree of life thing at the back is awesome.
It does a pretty good job of exploring how we currently understand life to have originated, and I love how the illustrations and the formatting/style of the text adds to the experience. However, given that we don’t really have life pinned down scientifically, explaining it to kids in a picture book proves tricky. Some parts of this are a little complex, and others feel like they raise more questions rather than answering them. Perhaps all of that is just impossible to avoid with a book like this! Still a great option for kids who seem particularly interested in the big questions.
The fold out tree of life thing at the back is awesome.
May 7, 2023
SO CUTE! I love how simple this book made how life is made up tiny particles. It also in the beginning starts with telling us what other scientists thought life was made of.
September 12, 2023
Fantastic STEM book for kids. Explains the concept of living things and orgins of life in a science based way.
September 13, 2021
Idan Ben-Barak and Philip Bunting seamlessly combine text and illustration to attempt to explain what life is. This is a huge concept to try to get across for anyone, let alone the targeted age group of this picture book. The fact that there is also no definitive answer is problematic. Although this is partially acknowledged - "we don't exactly where it happened. We don't know exactly how it happened" - the book comes across as fact rather than scientifically based supposition of one point of view - there are others.
There are some nice humorous additions in text and illustrations that add some levity to the vastness of the story being told, and it will certainly be talking about life and how we got it on Earth. Some of the language is very challenging for young readers, even when supported by informative,clear and brightly coloured illustrations. A three-page, vertical fold-out at the end of the book presents a simple graphical view of the tree of life - starting with the 'bubble introduced at the start of the book and who takes on the role of narrator.
I think this is a great effort at tackling a difficult subject that kids are curious about and the language and illustrations are ideally suited to the stylle of presentation. Although it is marketed for early childhood I feel older kids are more likely to ask the initial question and that some of the content is beyond simple explanations. One gripe is the lack of a timeframe for young readers to grasp just how long this would take - near the end "After a while*" with the notation *Literally billions of year" is justtoo nebulous.
We Go Way Back is a great book for all kids ages 3 and up, but especially for those curious minds who are always asking ‘but why?�
There are some nice humorous additions in text and illustrations that add some levity to the vastness of the story being told, and it will certainly be talking about life and how we got it on Earth. Some of the language is very challenging for young readers, even when supported by informative,clear and brightly coloured illustrations. A three-page, vertical fold-out at the end of the book presents a simple graphical view of the tree of life - starting with the 'bubble introduced at the start of the book and who takes on the role of narrator.
I think this is a great effort at tackling a difficult subject that kids are curious about and the language and illustrations are ideally suited to the stylle of presentation. Although it is marketed for early childhood I feel older kids are more likely to ask the initial question and that some of the content is beyond simple explanations. One gripe is the lack of a timeframe for young readers to grasp just how long this would take - near the end "After a while*" with the notation *Literally billions of year" is justtoo nebulous.
We Go Way Back is a great book for all kids ages 3 and up, but especially for those curious minds who are always asking ‘but why?�
December 29, 2023
5 stars. Wow! Simple answer to life on earth engagingly presented illustrations starts with what is life and where a kid gets it, looking back to the beginning of time with elements getting together in little bubbles that divided into all sorts of organisms animals plants and people
July 21, 2023
What a clever and CUTE explanation of evolution! Parenthetical title is "A book about life on Earth and how it all began." Colorful artwork features diverse kids and random pirates and robots (not life) and lollipop-like little bubbles representing cells. Even the author and illustrator info is comically informative. "He has an IOU scrawled on the back of a treasure mpa and has explored the seven seas with a healthy supply of limes and an ex-parrot." (Monty Python reference!)
March 2, 2023
This book puts how life on Earth began in a way that's easy to read with great illustrations to help children understand the science of the beginning of living creatures.
December 10, 2023
Great STEAM book for a younger audience. This book explains the origins of life and evolution in a scientifically precise and accessible way. I loved the illustrations and the fold-out.
August 28, 2024
Life is hard to define.
"Life is... um... life is the way some things make more things that are a lot like themselves but sometimes a little bit different."
Before there were plants or animals, and the earth was just lava and water and lightning and meteors. And then somehow there were elements in the seas like nitrogen, hydrogen, sodium, oxygen...
Elements joined together to form molecules. Molecules joined together to form bubbles. Other molecules sometimes got stuck in those bubbles. Then one day, a very clever bubble formed!
"This bubble could take molecules around it and use them to make more bubbles that were a lot like itself but sometimes a little bit different" - This phrase is written in the same spiral as the life definition was. That must mean it's a similar idea!
Then the book takes us through all the different things that little bubble became. Plants and animals and people!
Not being a science person myself, I can imagine that had I been introduced to words like elements and molecules in this context, they might have seemed pretty important! Instead of seeing them as boring and inconsequential homework. The book is also very pretty and colourful. Great job making a HUGE concept kid-sized!
"Life is... um... life is the way some things make more things that are a lot like themselves but sometimes a little bit different."
Before there were plants or animals, and the earth was just lava and water and lightning and meteors. And then somehow there were elements in the seas like nitrogen, hydrogen, sodium, oxygen...
Elements joined together to form molecules. Molecules joined together to form bubbles. Other molecules sometimes got stuck in those bubbles. Then one day, a very clever bubble formed!
"This bubble could take molecules around it and use them to make more bubbles that were a lot like itself but sometimes a little bit different" - This phrase is written in the same spiral as the life definition was. That must mean it's a similar idea!
Then the book takes us through all the different things that little bubble became. Plants and animals and people!
Not being a science person myself, I can imagine that had I been introduced to words like elements and molecules in this context, they might have seemed pretty important! Instead of seeing them as boring and inconsequential homework. The book is also very pretty and colourful. Great job making a HUGE concept kid-sized!
October 14, 2024
I am OBSESSED. So impressed with how the science is presented without compromise and accessibly for young readers. We travel from a barren earth billions of years ago to a world of micro-organisms through to the diversity of today. Also touches on heredity and genetics, discusses the idea of 'life' with nuance and honesty about the things we *don't* know. The art style is simple enough to digest while still having details to discover. Black background contrasts with very colorful foreground and good image size for reading to a group. The page with the individual elements is one of my favorites drawn in their natural color and texture. Big fold out at the end of the tree of life- humans are in their appropriate position and given no special treatment or extra visibility, which I greatly appreciate. As a big paleobiology nerd I'm often hyper aware of human bias in the presentation of the story of life. This book is a PROFOUND introduction to our place in the universe and how we got here. Every page has opportunities for big idea discussions.
I discovered this book while reading dozens of math and science picture books for a class project. It is un-matched and all the other books feel a little lesser in comparison now. This book has spoiled me!
I discovered this book while reading dozens of math and science picture books for a class project. It is un-matched and all the other books feel a little lesser in comparison now. This book has spoiled me!
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December 12, 2024After my 4.5 year old kid asked me, "Did G-d create the world?" I was looking for a book that would answer the larger questions about how life began and the librarian expertly recommended this book. We Go Way Back is brilliant because it explains a current understanding of how life began but also leaves the lesser known parts vague as exciting options - for example as to where on Earth life began it shows dynamic pictures of different areas like a pool of warm water, near undersea vents, in mountains, or in clouds. Also the use of the colorful bubbles to represent the simple organisms was both cute and clear enough for my kid to start understanding the concept of simple organisms that then evolved into more complex organisms. In addition, my kid laughed at some of the illustrations like the bubble that had three eyes - and if my kid laughs I know I have a winner of a book. This was fun to read, made current scientific understanding accessible to a young audience, and helped in my mission to make sure my kid does not get distracted by overly simple stories of G-d creating life.
April 12, 2023
Pros:
Charming introduction, with lots of funny descriptions.
It's a huge topic, but the simple approach covers the basics in an accessible, age-appropriate way.
The circle theme ties things together thematically and visually.
The fold-out tree of life is great to look at and a successfully impactful use of format and content.
Cool hidden cover (many "bubbles").
Funny (and illustrative) final endpaper.
Quibbles:
I expected more funny asides like on the introductory page, but that didn't repeat.
Personally I find it off-putting to have to spin the book to read the text going around in circles. I imagine curious, adept young readers will enjoy it (or enjoy having it read to them). I imagine young readers who find reading at all challenging will skip the circular text and thus miss out. Not confirmed yet, though.
I appreciate the humans' many skin colors, but would like to see really dark skin represented.
A visual timeline (from first molecules to the tree of life) would be helpful, for perspective.
Charming introduction, with lots of funny descriptions.
It's a huge topic, but the simple approach covers the basics in an accessible, age-appropriate way.
The circle theme ties things together thematically and visually.
The fold-out tree of life is great to look at and a successfully impactful use of format and content.
Cool hidden cover (many "bubbles").
Funny (and illustrative) final endpaper.
Quibbles:
I expected more funny asides like on the introductory page, but that didn't repeat.
Personally I find it off-putting to have to spin the book to read the text going around in circles. I imagine curious, adept young readers will enjoy it (or enjoy having it read to them). I imagine young readers who find reading at all challenging will skip the circular text and thus miss out. Not confirmed yet, though.
I appreciate the humans' many skin colors, but would like to see really dark skin represented.
A visual timeline (from first molecules to the tree of life) would be helpful, for perspective.
December 24, 2023
idan ben-barak'ın bu kitabı yalama veiçinde bir iskelet var kitaplarını çok seviyorum. bunun en büyük sebebi de karakterlerin okurla konuşması, kitaba dokunup onu bedensel olarak da deneyimlemeye çağırması. yaş grubuna göre bu anlatım tekniği kitapları iyice eğlenceli kılıyor, hâlâ kıkır kıkır gülüp eğlenerek okuyoruz zaten.
bu kitapta o eğlence dozunu göremiyoruz ama ben yine de çok sevdim. yaşamın başlangıcını, evrimi anlatan çocuk kitaplarını baş tacı etmeye dünden hazırım zaten.
bu arada, kafama takılan bir şey var. ilk oluşan canlı "baloncuk"un üremesiyle meydana gelen ikinci baloncuğun "kendisine çok benzesede bazen birazcık farklı" olduğu yazılmış. eşeysiz ürediğine göre tıpatıp aynısı olması gerekmiyor muydu? yaşamın başlangıcına dair kabul gören birkaç teoriyi küçük yaşların ilgisini çekecek kısa cümlelerle, yine de neyini nasılını aslında tam olarak bilmediğimizi vurgulayarak anlatan bir kitapta buna da dikkat edilirdi diye düşünüyorum. ben bir şey kaçırıyorum herhalde.
bu kitapta o eğlence dozunu göremiyoruz ama ben yine de çok sevdim. yaşamın başlangıcını, evrimi anlatan çocuk kitaplarını baş tacı etmeye dünden hazırım zaten.
bu arada, kafama takılan bir şey var. ilk oluşan canlı "baloncuk"un üremesiyle meydana gelen ikinci baloncuğun "kendisine çok benzesede bazen birazcık farklı" olduğu yazılmış. eşeysiz ürediğine göre tıpatıp aynısı olması gerekmiyor muydu? yaşamın başlangıcına dair kabul gören birkaç teoriyi küçük yaşların ilgisini çekecek kısa cümlelerle, yine de neyini nasılını aslında tam olarak bilmediğimizi vurgulayarak anlatan bir kitapta buna da dikkat edilirdi diye düşünüyorum. ben bir şey kaçırıyorum herhalde.
March 17, 2022
This is a pretty big topic for a little picture book but it makes a reasonably attempt. I found it a bit hit and miss with lots going on in some pages (almost too much) but not so much in others. It tries to unravel life and and earth began so can be used to introduce science and evolution. I am sure there are some people out there far cleverer than me who would know exactly how to use this book, talk about it and share it with children.
June 7, 2023
Brief summary: Young readers examine the definition of "life" and where it all begins. The book explores a complex question by breaking it down into a slow progression of how the earth was created and how molecules formed.
Large and colorful illustrations also help clarify the concepts.
Rating: 3.5/5 📗📗📗1/2
Large and colorful illustrations also help clarify the concepts.
Rating: 3.5/5 📗📗📗1/2
June 28, 2023
I found “We Go Way Back� not as delightful or detailed as “Do Not Lick This Book.� I think young readers can handle more than this book offered. At the same time, I am so glad the book exists as a way to spark interest and conversations about the scientific origins of life on earth (even if the book does not give a clear answer to its own question of “What is life?�).
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September 20, 2023The illustrations in this book were great! I liked the casual tone in the text and illustrations but thought the text was a bit bland. I guess it is speaking to a younger reader. It was an interesting story but I was kind of surprised that it just boom ended. I was expecting more to the story, but I guess it's more of an origin story than a "where we are now" story.
June 2, 2024
I read this book as an adult reader for the AR Diamond Book Award. This little Non-Fiction book was made to give information about how we all got here. What is life? How did everything get here? Overall, it was a good read. My daughter read it with me and had a fun time exploring each page for the little hidden pirates.
November 20, 2023
Kids' books that try to explain big concepts are VERY hit and miss. This one is closer to hit than miss. It's a hard balance, keeping it easy to understand and still answering some big questions, and this does a decent job.
October 11, 2021
A little too detailed for a picture book but the illustrations are cool.
See if you can spot all the pirates 🏴☠�
See if you can spot all the pirates 🏴☠�
October 11, 2021
This is beautifully illustrated and is a simplified version of how we got here. And it doesn't treat us like idiots. The fold out section at the back is awesome too.
October 25, 2022
4 stars for this take on the creation/evolution of life on earth
I read a digital advanced copy, courtesy of the publisher
I read a digital advanced copy, courtesy of the publisher
February 15, 2023
A solid attempt at communicating a very, very big idea to very small people. My son keeps asking about DNA and the big bang so hopefully this will play right into his interests.
March 15, 2023
A picture book that strives to explain how life on Earth began. I appreciate the attempt and the appealing illustrations.I don’t think kids will understand these high level concepts, though.
April 20, 2023
While this was very well done and neatly organized with simplistic text, I gave it 2 stars only because it's not a topic of interest to me, but I'm sure it will attract a lot of young readers.
July 28, 2023
This was fun! It left me with more questions than answers, but I suppose that's a good thing, right?
September 20, 2023
A very accessible—even for science-averse me—exploration of what life is and how it got started. Colorful illustrations help.
Read for Librarian Book Group
Read for Librarian Book Group
October 15, 2023
A look at how life on Earth may have began through the lens of philosophical science.
October 27, 2023
This was a colorful nonfiction piece that talks about the origins of the world.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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