Human Body Detectives Series by Dr. Heather Manley
Review by Chris Singer
About the author (from her website):
Heather Manley was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario. She studied biology at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. Initially she focused on wildlife conservation and animal biology, however, with some exposure to naturopathic medicine, this health care philosophy rang true for her. She switched to pre-med and graduated in 1993 and earned her doctorate from the National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, Oregon before moving with her family to Hawaii where she became licensed and continues to practice today. She began her writing once her children were born and realized the importance of teaching them, by example, about healthy food and lifestyle. Telling them what to eat was not enough, so she created and wrote educational adventure stories that have evolved into the Activity Workbook and Audio CD Human Body Detective series and now in picture story book format!
About the series (from publisher):
The Human Body Detectives stories feature two young “Human Body Detectives,” Merrin and Pearl, who magically enter different systems in the body to solve health mysteries. Through action packed educational adventures, listeners learn how the various systems work and which foods best fuel each system. The accompanying workbook’s activities, puzzles and colorful stickers reinforce what the kids learn.
Case File #1: The Lucky Escape
Merrin and Pearl’s little brother Robbie has swallowed a penny. Now through magic and imagination they find themselves on an adventure through his digestive system where they must grab the penny, save Robbie, and narrowly escape his poopy diaper.
Case File #2: Battle With the Bugs
Merrin and Pearl’s little cousin Max is sick, threatening everyone’s Mexican holiday. This time the girls find themselves in Max’s body, witnessing firsthand the immune system in action. They befriend a white blood cell warrior who leads them into battle against the offending bacteria…
Case File #3: A Heart Pumping Adventure
During breakfast with her dad, Merrin is concerned about his eating habits and his heart. A few moments later, she and Pearl are riding on a red, pillowy, donut-shaped boat, floating on a red-colored sea and surrounded by hundreds of these grape-like things! Where are the girls and where are they headed?
My take on the series:
After reading this series, I wasn’t surprised at all to learn that Dr. Heather Manley made Babble.com’s list of Top 50 “Mompreneurs.”
The Human Body Detectives series is just fantastic! I would have really benefited from something like this while I was in school. While I was a good reader, I did much better in classes where I was excited about and enjoyed what I was reading. So although I did well in language arts classes, I often struggled