Ernest Rutherford: Just an ordinary boy, Maria Gill, illustrated by Alistair Hughes
Upstart Press, 2023
“Curiosity exists in us all”
The above quote is the epigraph to Ernest Rutherford: Just an ordinary boy. It is so very fitting as it is a key to the life of the scientist. Ernest grew up in Spring Grove (Brightwater, Nelson) in a family of fourteen. The book tracks the life of the scientist from boyhood to his Nobel Prize and the global acclaim. Maria Gill has produced a text that is clear, concise, fascinating, while Alistair Hughes‘ illustrations are exquisite (they remind me of watercolours). Maria and Alistair have collaborated on two other books about significant events in New Zealand: The King’s Medal and Ice Breaker!
I loved the fact Ernest’s teacher gave him a science book that inspired him to do things and to question. Maria’s book seems exactly the kind of book that will inspire another child to do and to question.
I especially love the essential “takeaways” of Ernest Rutherford, vital ideas that transform the book into a children’s work that matters! Here are some examples:
*To foster curiosity in a child is a very good thing – to be curious about the world we live in (visible and invisible), the world we have lived in, and the world we will live in. Out of learning comes curiosity – a lifelong practice to treasure and embody in my view.
*The story of Ernest underlines how important it is to try in the face of adversity or failure. If at first you don’t succeed, try again, as the saying goes! Ernest had to resit his scholarship exam to go to high school as his family could not afford to send him. Numerous examples of perseverance follow.
*Questions are important! Ernest was full of questions from an early age, and out of this love of questioning and persistent work came discovery.
Maria Gill is one of our national treasures when it comes to nonfiction children’s books. Ernest Rutherford: Just an ordinary boy is no exception. His unfolding life is inspiring. Importantly, it is good to spend time with the curious child as much as it is the curious adult, and to read examples of Ernest’s key experiments and discoveries. Maria places him alongside other notable scientists (Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Isaac Newton), and offers a valuable timeline and glossary. This book is essential reading. I will leave you with an apt sentence from the book’s conclusion:
“Perseverance and curiosity can give you the greatest gift of all … knowledge.”
Upstart page
MARIA GILL is an author of over 60 books for children and teachers. She wrote the story about Ernest Rutherford while on a Christchurch Arts Centre Residency during the 2021 pandemic lockdown. Maria’s book Anzac Heroes won the New Zealand Book Awards for Children & Young Adults Non Fiction Award as well as the Supreme Book prize. In 2020 Storylines awarded Maria the Margaret Mahy Medal for services to children’s literature. She writes fulltime in a little seaside village north of Auckland. Maria’s website
ALISTAIR HUGHES has illustrated seven children’s books including The King’s Medal, Snapper: The Real Story, and Ice Breaker! An Epic Antarctic Adventure. He has also written, designed and illustrated a visual analysis of British genre films, and a children’s book called The Night Sky comes out later in the year. He worked for a major media organisation for almost two decades and now writes, illustrates and designs graphics for his own company; Shoreline Creative, based in Tasman’s Golden Bay.
Poetry Box 