Ara the Star Engineer

Ara and her assistant DeeDee love to learn about big numbers. The story begins when they decide to try to count an enormous number of stars. As a computer, DeeDee can help, but Ara needs to learn how to program him to count first. Ara and DeeDee visit the Innovation Plex where DeeDee was made to learn how to program a computer. They visit a number of areas in the Innovation Plex, and in each area they learn about courage, creativity, coding, and collaboration. Ara and DeeDee successfully count the stars in the end and discover an amazing algorithm to solve any problem: “courage, creativity, code and collaboration!” The back matter of the book reveals the female engineers presented throughout the story to be real engineers and explains the work that they do. A glossary provides readers with the opportunity to learn about some of the more complicated vocabulary used throughout the text.

The motivation behind the creation of this book is meaningful and inspiring. By presenting engineering in a children’s book that highlights a diverse set of female engineers, Singh invites a young female audience to explore the field of computer engineering in an empowering way. There are many concepts presented throughout Ara the Star Engineer, and, because there are so many, they are not explained in depth. The characters will appeal to a young audience while the explanations of the concepts and the back matter may be better suited to a slightly older audience. Konak’s illustrations feature diverse characters and will give readers a glimpse into what it might look like to work as a computer engineer. The presentation of diverse females working in a STEM environment in the illustrations is powerful and inspiring. Readers will enjoy going on an adventure with Ara and DeeDee, but they should not expect a flowing narrative, but rather a glimpse into each area of the Innovation Plex and a quick exploration into the basics of some STEM concepts. Ara the Star Engineer will be a reasonable addition to large collections where STEM titles with diverse female characters are needed.