Julio Tello, born in 1880 just outside Lima, Peru, was nicknamed Sharuko as a young boy, which means "brave" in Quechua, his native language. As a child, he explored the caves in the foothills of the mountainous area where he grew up, and he uncovered ancient tombs there. These discoveries piqued Sharuko's curiosity, and he grew up to be a well-known archaeologist whose scholarship helped others worldwide understand the scientific achievements of ancient Peruvian cultures, which developed irrigation systems and surgery more than 2500 years ago. The clear, concise bilingual (Spanish/English) text is well researched and gives a good sense of the life and work of Dr. Tello, while the watercolor and gouache illustrations by a Peruvian artist provide a visual context that gives us a good sense of time and place. (Ages 7-10)