Reviews
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All About Your Senses – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
Using concrete examples, each title explains the basic purpose of its featured sense. For example, in Mouths the text “Maria tastes the lemon. Her sister dared her to do it! Maria makes a funny face. The lemon tastes sour” is paired with a picture of a girl grimacing over a lemon. View →
African Animals – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
. . .offer clear overviews of each animal’s physical features, habits, habitats, and herd or social structures. The color photographs are a mix of reasonably sharp close ups and distance portraits shot in the wild. Each volume ends with a page of interesting facts. . . .The informational View →
Get Healthy – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
Intended to empower kids to make healthy and safe choices, these titles provide a nice overview. Tieck advises against worry, emphasizes preparation, and explains the body’s natural response to danger, which helps to temper scary topics. The large typeface and full-color photographs make View →
Forces of Nature – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
. . . there is credible content that includes scales of measurement, e.g., the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale, the Fujita Scale, the Richter Scale, etc., as well as interesting “Xtreme Fact” text boxes, which are scattered throughout the volumes. Accounts of historical occurrences-such… View →
Super Simple Cultural Art Set 1 – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
In these attractive volumes, brief, clear instructions are illustrated with easy-to-follow, color photos. Each book starts with an introduction about the featured culture and then presents simple crafts inspired by it. The activities are well suited for primary-grade children, and the… View →
Gun Education and Safety – School Library Journal
History, safety, sports, and rights are all described in a politically unbiased manner. The images largely consist of clear photographs featuring males and females of differing ages, races, and occupations using many different firearms. The clearest book for novices is Ammunition, View →
Cool Garden to Table – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
These spare books explain how to plant, care for, and harvest vegetables and fruits in a container garden. The instructions are succinct and easy to understand and are accompanied by clear color photographs and illustrations. The titles end with a half dozen recipes featuring the… View →
Best Sport Ever – School Library Journal, Series Made Simple
This series celebrates eight popular sports and cites the reasons that so many people are passionate about them. Each volume draws readers in with a chapter describing a key moment in that sport’s history. For example, Hockey highlights the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” when the U.S.… View →
Boston Strangler (Unsolved Mysteries) – Booklist
A disquieting entry in the Unsolved Mysteries series, this account of the hunt for the killer of (at least) 11 Boston-area women between 1962 and 1964 is not only laced with lurid details but also presents a case study in media-fueled terror and how public pressure to resolve… View →
Indigenous People's Rights (Essential Issues) – School Library Journal
Marsico provides a broad overview of indigenous cultures from around the globe before delving into the common problems faced by many of them and outlining possible solutions, with a particular focus on the pros and cons of fair-trade initiatives. This book will give beginners a strong… View →
Big Buddy Biographies Set 7 – School Library Journal
Full-page, full-color photographs are supplemented with clear descriptive explanations, and “Did You Know” quick-fact boxes and eye-catching graphics appear throughout. With their large print and one or two paragraphs per page, these books are a good fit for beginner and transitional… View →
Essential Lives Set 7 – School Library Journal
The authors of these biographies present information that is current, accurate, and relevant, while also providing an overview of their subjects’ early lives and cultural significance. The books are primarily positive in tone, delivering a balanced, informative description of each… View →
How to Analyze the Works of J.K. Rowling, Stephenie Meyer (Essential Critiques) – School Library Journal
These titles engage students in the process of literary criticism by using works with which most teens are familiar. The chapters are broken down into small, easy-to-manage sections with headings, and helpful tools and guides appear throughout. In modeling clear examples of literary… View →
World of Mythology Set 2 – Booklist
For kids who have graduated from the Greeks and Romans and are looking to delve into the lore of other cultures, the books in the World of Mythology series will be tempting. Rather than retelling particular legends, the books focus on presenting a who’s who for each pantheon and… View →
Civil Rights Movement (Essential Events) – Booklist
An opening chapter on Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech during the 1963 March on Washington sets the scene for the dramatic struggles and triumphs to come in this entry in the Essential Events series. A final chapter looks at the impact of the… View →
How to Analyze the Films of Tim Burton, James Cameron, George Lucas (Essential Critiques) – School Library Journal
These titles provide insight into what critical theory is and how popular films can be analyzed through different schools of criticism. There is also some basic biographical information provided about the filmmaker. The authors do not overwhelm readers; instead they approach each… View →
Juneteenth (Holidays) – Booklist
Presenting information as straightforwardly as possible, this entry in the Holidays series centers around Juneteenth, a day that commemorates the end of slavery. A variety of festive photographs and a few pieces of period artwork break up the text and reinforce key concepts. In an age… View →
Inside the Industry – Library Media Connection
This series looks at a specific broad field, and breaks it down to specific jobs within the industry. The depth of coverage is good for elementary students and middle school students. . . . Recommended. View →
Children's Authors Set 6 – School Library Journal
The lives of popular authors are briefly chronicled in a chatty style. Each book contains the relevant information necessary for reports. High-quality, full-color photos appear throughout these solid choices especially for reluctant readers. View →
Ho Chi Minh (Essential Lives) – School Library Journal
Opening with his 1945 speech declaring Vietnam’s freedom and naming himself president, this biography continues with a brief summary of Ho Chi Minh’s accomplishments. Johnson then goes back to his childhood and moves through his life chronologically. Several potentially confusing points, View →
United States Encyclopedias
World of Mythical Beings
Captives of the Reich