Review blog

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Jan 23 2020

China through time retold by Edward Aves

DK, 2020. ISBN: 9780241356296.
(Age: 7+) Highly recommended. Themes: China, Canals, Yangtze, Ancient history, Regeneration. Two and a half thousand years ago, an emperor had a brilliant idea - joining the two mighty Chinese rivers, the Yangtze and Huai to form a magnificent canal which would enable him to move troops quickly to places where they were needed. The next thousand yeas saw canals built and waterways joined to create an incredible canal capable of trading between Hangzhou in China's south and Beijing in the north.
Each double page of this outstanding large format book recreates a scene in the life of this canal system, shadowing the rise of China as a powerful nation in the Asian realm. The first double page, entitled, Construction begins, Yangzhou 486BCE, shows an army of peasants digging and carting soil. Information around the edges of the pages gives details about how the people worked, while the illustration shows in no uncertain terms the brutality of the regime in charge. Several men in chains are being taken away by heavily armoured warriors, one dying man is being carted off by fellow workers, high towers surround the project with soldiers on the alert. Eager eyes will pick out the work the men do, the magnificence of the emperor and his retinue, the tools with which these people worked.
Each subsequent double page displays the history of the Grand Canal, completed in 605 CE. So readers will see the impact of the canal bringing peace, civilisation and trade to towns along its banks. But people became complacent and in 1699 CE a great flood threatened so the emperor demanded that the river course be changed and the canal dredged to avoid further floods destroying towns and cities. More care was taken of the canal, reversing its decline and even though fewer barges ply their trade along the waterway the Grand Canal is a showcase of China's ancient heritage, a canal of some 1800 ks, the longest and oldest canal in the world. This book shows readers the people who use it: the builders, the soldiers, merchants, rivermen, the emperor and his advisers, children and mysterious travellers.
The richly detailed illustrations are enticing, giving the reader a panorama of Chinese life and customs, showing building styles, dress and food, bridges and boats, life along the canal from small farms and villages to the outstanding modern city of Tianjin, a stark contrast to the pages before and after with their images of past treasures. The last page offers a short quiz and glossary with information about the illustrator, Beijing artist Du Fei who specialises in detailed historical illustrations.
This is a remarkable book which reflects China's importance in the world today while highlighting one of its past achievements.
Fran Knight

Jan 23 2020

Foul is fair by Hannah Capin

Penguin, 2020. ISBN: 9780241404973.
(Age: 16+) Highly recommended. Revenge - this is the name of the jet black hair dye that Elle chooses for her transformation into Jade, following the night of her sweet 16 birthday outing to the St Andrew's prep party, a party which changed her life, where she, bright, shimmering in her silver dress and full of party fun, found herself drugged by a spiked drink and gang raped by the school's best young lads. Author Capin spares us the details of that night, but the brief memory flashes that haunt Elle/Jade let us know enough of what happened.
Elle decides she is not a victim, she is not a survivor, she is an Avenger. She and her coven of loyal friends, Jenny, Summer and Mads, set out to exact that vengeance with the death of every boy that took part. And so Elle cuts and dyes her hair, and becomes Jade, the tough new girl at St Andrew's. These are the first couple of chapters of Capin's book. From there the action grips you by the throat and drags you into the spiral of events where Jade, cool and ruthlessly in control, targets each of her assailants one by one. A pawn in Jade's game is the honourable young Mack, a boy who was not part of the gang, but who becomes an easy target, someone who will do her bidding.
If you think the story sounds violent and gruesome, think about the plot of Macbeth, the Shakespearean play offered to senior secondary students. Capin's novel is another version of the Macbeth story; only it is not a mother driving her son to murder, but an equally driven girl able to manipulate Mack in just the same way. Her three friends are her coven, the witches, who chant and foretell the future and assist Jade in becoming the powerful queen of the St Andrew's peer group. There is no mercy, no kindness, no love, just a fierce determination for vengeance and power.
Capin's novel would make an interesting study in its reinterpretation of Shakespeare's play, an adaptation for modern times that is bound to capture the imagination of students with its setting of school peer groups, jealousy, bullying, and sexual assault.
Helen Eddy

Jan 23 2020

Denali by Ben Moon

Simon and Schuster, 2019. ISBN: 9780143133612.
(Age: Adolescent - Adult) In an unexpected way, this true story lifts the reader into a realm where human and animal interaction creates a bond that is intensely supportive and loving. Denali is about the deep relationship between a dog and a human being. Its focus is both on Ben's inner and outer 'selves' in all their complexity, on his moods, desires and being, and intuiting the soul and mind of his beloved dog. The narrative reflects the intensely supportive and loving relationship that Ben builds with his dog.
In this intensely personal narrative, Ben takes us into his world, one that embraces fresh air, mountains, surfing and climbing, and includes, at the heart of his story, his beloved dog Denali. This is clearly a revelatory and honest self-portrait that remains true to its intention, woven around the relationship between human and dog. The story soars with the emotional support that each offers when the other is suffering. Throughout the narrative we are privileged to 'hear' what Denali is thinking, and those of us who believe in the emotional and mental intelligence of dogs can understand how comforting are the 'thoughts' that Ben intuits Denali as offering. We are invited to understand the fundamental principles of loving concern that Ben feels he is offered by Denali, and the deep concern that Ben offers Denali in return is evident throughout their lives together.
Ben Moon is a much respected professional photographer with an absorbing interest in the outdoors, in the earth's extraordinary structures, the mountains, the crags and the roiling seas. He surfs, climbs and scales sheer cliffs, his stunning professional photographs and stories supporting his lifestyle. Backed by the suppliers of the clothing and tools appropriate for his loved outdoor adventures, he makes short movies, writes up details of places, climbs and outdoor walks, and produces exceptional photographs of the mountains, cliffs, lakes and seas.
It would be most suitable, and indeed inspiring, for both adolescent and adult reading.
Elizabeth Bondar

Jan 22 2020

I am perfectly designed by Karamo Brown with Jason Brown

Illus. by Anoosha Syed. Macmillan Children's Books, 2019. ISBN: 9781529036152. 40pp.
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. American media personality, author, and activist Karamo Brown began his career in 2004 on the MTV The Real world; Philadelphia, becoming the first openly gay black man on a reality show. He is now a cultural icon, heading the Netflix show, Queer Eye.
This book I am perfectly designed, celebrates diversity and empowers children as it relates the story of a boy and his father walking and talking through their day. Based on the interaction between Karamo and his son, Jason, the book brims with understanding. Each step is full of love and celebration, companionship and family. Beginning with breakfast the chat between father and son recalls their earlier years, as the boy remarks his head seems so big in photos, but dad replies, it was perfectly designed for you. This conversation sets the tone of the book, the dialogue between the two, father and son, the child talking about past events, dad reminding him all along that he is perfectly designed. Climbing a tree in the ark, or playing on the swing, dad reminds him that he is perfectly designed to explore the world. When the boy becomes lost or sad, he is told that he is perfectly designed and wonderful to his dad no matter how he feels.
The boy then talks about the future when he has left home and dad grows older, and the two decide that roles will be reversed, that the boy is perfectly designed to care for his father.
Each page reflects the sentiment expressed in the text, as the illustrations are full of love and family, reminding readers what they do with their dads, from talking over the breakfast table, to walking to the park, celebrating Halloween, playing in the playground, climbing a tree, meeting friends at the ice cream stall, playing with other children in the street.
The illustrations by Canadian artist, Syed, bubble with family life, displaying enthusiastic relationships between parents and children, siblings and friends, reflecting the diversity of modern life.
The smallest detail will be picked out by eager eyes: tying shoelaces, taking a photo with the phone, the age groups spotted in the streets, the warmth of a family picnic, the market stalls, the diversity of building styles. Each caught and held my attention, making me want to read the book again. The endpapers too will draw the eyes of the readers as they see themselves within one of the family groups, and spot their friends and relatives.
This is a enticing story showcasing the loving relationship between a father and his son, modelling the things they do together, the times that will have as a family.
A clip on the Macmillan website shows Karama and his son, talking about why they wrote the book.
Themes: Diversity, Self image, Confidence, Inclusion, Communication.
Fran Knight

Jan 22 2020

Deeplight by Frances Hardinge

Macmillan, 2019. ISBN: 9781529014570.
(Age: 11+) It is 30 years since the underwater gods of the Myriad archipelago fought a cataclysmic battle and all died. Since then relics of the gods' bodies are sought after as they retain power. 14 year old orphan, Hark, and his friend Jelt, 16, search the beaches and dive for pieces of 'godware' to sell. Brave, clever, courageous Jelt pulls Hark along like a current but his increasingly reckless schemes eventually land Hark at the slave market where, after eloquently speaking up for himself, he is saved from the slave galleys and bought by Dr Vyne, a strange woman researching the old gods. He is taken to an island fortress which turns out to be a sanctuary for the old priests who no longer have gods to serve. There Hark settles in to a life serving the priests and passing on any of their knowledge to Dr. Vyne. When Jelt finds Hark and insists on him helping retrieve an old bathysphere, loyal Hark gets involved in something bigger than both of them.
This story is infused with language which conjures up images of the sea, it ebbs and flows capturing the reader in a net of the imagination. Through it all, issues of loyalty keep being tested: 'loyalty is not a virtue in its own right. Its' worth depends on where it's spent' p128. Should Hark give loyalty where it is not reciprocated? The more he learns through the stories of the old priests, the more he understands about the connection between fear and faith and the larger issues of Myriad's place in their world and he has to make some hard decisions for the greater good.
A dark and complex story set in a well imagined fantasy world suitable for middle school students and all lovers of fantasy.
Themes: Fantasy, magic, loyalty, friendship.
Sue Speck

Jan 22 2020

Life without diabetes by Dr Roy Taylor

Simon and Schuster, 2020. ISBN: 9781760853914. 320pp.
(Age: Adult) Recommended. The Newcastle Diet gained notoriety in 2011, when a small group of people went on the diet exploring the link between diabetes and the fatty tissue around the liver and pancreas, by initially living for eight weeks on 600 calories a day. Half of the small group were deemed to be in remission with their diabetes at the end of the three month trial.
Professor Taylor's book, Life without Diabetes, outlines the physiology of the gut and what the pancreas, liver and stomach do in digesting food.
A forward by one of the participants in the study is of course positive and joyous about having achieved a remission for her diabetes and losing weight.
And following this introduction is a handy guide to using the book. If like me, you want to get to the nitty gritty, then turning to chapter 7 is the way to go, as this chapter tells you about the 600 calories a day diet and how to go about it. Chapters one to six outline the way the body usually copes with food intake, and what goes wrong to cause type 2 diabetes. And at the end of each chapter is a fact file reiterating what was covered in the chapter before, giving those overwhelmed with the terminology of the book an easy to understand navigation tool.
The guide gives access to those with little time on their hands, while many others will read the book from cover to cover. I dipped in an out, reading the sections suggested, but also using the substantial index to look things up that I wanted to know more about (the pancreas, for example).
Although chatty and using layman's terms through out, I found the book heavy going and needed to refer to the index, as well as having a list of commonly used terms and their meanings as a book mark. Not having done biology at school is a distinct disadvantage. (I have also read Gut by Giulia Enders recently and even though it is written in the most basic of language and uses humour to get its message across, I needed to reread and keep a checklist of commonly used words)
But this aside, for those living with diabetes, this is a fascinating exploration of why it occurs and the steps people can take to reduce the likelihood of getting it and a guide for some to shake off the mantle of diabetes altogether. It worked with seven out of the eleven original dieters in 2011 and has gained a much larger group of supporters and participants since then.
A well researched and presented book, well worth a visit in the continuing search for a way of loosing weight and preventing, even reversing the onset of diabetes. Themes: Diabetes, Diet, Newcastle Diet.
Fran Knight

Jan 22 2020

Don't read this book before dinner by Anna Claybourne

National Geographic Kids, 2019. ISBN: 9781426334511. 144pp., pbk.
(Age: 6-12) "If you love to be grossed out, grab a seat at the table to revel in some of the most repulsive and downright disgusting true stories from around the globe.
From wretched rodents and beastly bugs to putrid plants and muck-filled moats, step right in to find out more about the icky, sticky world around you. Gloriously gross stories of decaying delicacies, foul fashion, horrible history, awful animals, and more are paired with eye-popping pictures, fun facts, and hilarious quizzes in this fun book. Topics go way beyond food to include art, plants, animals, fashion, pop culture, medicine, the human body, and beyond. It's a hot mess to digest, but it's sure to leave kids disgusted and delighted . . . " (Publisher)
Using an appealing double-page spread format to explore all things gross, Nat Geo Kids is designed to appeal to the 6-12 year olds keen to find out more about their world and what is in it.
This particular edition is one that is likely to appeal to young boys and while there are those adults who don't think this sort of thing is "real reading" (in the same way comics were disdained in their day), in my opinion anything that encourages them to hone their literacy skills is to be commended, particularly when it has the quality that you know is associated with Nat Geo Kids. To add to the experience and spread their horizons wider, there is also the Australian version of their website which has unique topical local content such as What is a Bushfire?
There are often queries to TL networks about what are the best magazine subscriptions to continue as popularity tends to wane, and for the primary school age group, Nat Geo Kids is always near the top of the list proving it has stood the test of time as an investment. With such a focus on the environment well beyond the curriculum, it just make sense to make it available to our students.
Barbara Braxton

Jan 21 2020

Cat science unleashed by Jodi Wheeler-Toppen

Photographs by Matthew Rakola. National Geographic Kids, 2019. ISBN: 9781426334412. 80pp., pbk.
(Age: 6-12) This is part of the NatGeo Kids Hands-on science series and complements their website aimed at 6-12 year olds. But rather than just facts and figures about cats that can be found in any book about them, this encourages the reader to participate in 22 safe and cat-friendly activities that let them work alongside their cat to discover what makes it tick.
They can learn the effects of catnip and why it can see so well in the dark; how it balances so well and always land on its feet as wells as toys to make. Each activity is paired with step-by-step instructions, clear and interesting scientific explanations, and cool photographs shot specifically for this book. Hands-on activities and fun information for budding scientists prompt further learning and offer a behind-the-scenes look at current feline research.
Using a magazine format with lots of photos and diagrams as well as information in accessible chunks, it is divided into four chapters, each accompanied by relevant explanations and activities. There is also a glossary, an index, and other extra information to help students build their information literacy skills as they learn to navigate non-fiction texts.
There are often queries to TL networks about what are the best magazine subscriptions to continue as popularity tends to wane, and for the primary school age group, Nat Geo Kids is always near the top of the list proving it has stood the test of time as an investment. With such a focus on the environment well beyond the curriculum, it just make sense to make it available to our students.
Barbara Braxton

Jan 21 2020

Aesop's fables first reading series by Susanna Davidson

Illus. by John Joven. Usborne, 2019. 48pp., hbk.
The lion and the mouse. ISBN: 9781474956550.
The ant and the grasshopper. ISBN: 9781474956567.
The hare and the tortoise. ISBN: 9781474956543.
There are some stories that have stood the test of time for generations and Aesop's fables are among these with their messages still pertinent even in this age of screens and technology. So this new release of these old tales written and illustrated for young emerging readers will open them up to a new generation.
The lion and the mouse tells the story of the arrogant lion who cannot imagine that a tiny mouse would ever be able to help him but discovers that friends can be found in strange places; The ant and the grasshopper reminds us about the need to balance work and play as Ant busily prepares for winter, while Grasshopper sings the summer away; and The hare and the tortoise pits a boastful hare against the slow tortoise with a surprising result.
Knowing these sorts of stories which are the basis of many other stories enriches the young child's literary knowledge and adds depth to their understanding of those other stories so to have them available in the library's collection is essential, in my opinion.
Barbara Braxton

Jan 17 2020

Big lies in a small town by Diane Chamberlain

St Martin's Press, 2020. ISBN: 9781509808625.
(Age: Adult - Mature YA) Recommended for adult readers. The young woman, Morgan Christopher is unexpectedly rescued from jail through a bequest and request from a benefactor known for his incredible artistic talents. Morgan's own incomplete art skills are needed as she is thrust into the task of restoring a mural created in 1940. This restoration project comes with time pressures and emotional pressures from the artist's daughter as she unearths the history of the original artist, Anna Dale. Anna was the winner of a National Town Mural competition to paint the mural for the town of Edenton. As an outsider, she ruffles a few locals and her Northerner ways and opinions are sometimes at odds with the local North Carolina residents. The social milieu of the 1940's town reveals the inter-racial conflicts of Southern USA in the 1940s as well as the joys and challenges of the small town. What should she include in her artistic representation of the town? When the contemporary parolee, Morgan, investigates the history of the mural that was never displayed, she uncovers a history that has many twists - and some of them are not pleasant. In her own story she must unravel her own insecurities related to the event that caused her imprisonment, and needs to decide whether she is worthy of love and the incredible honour of becoming an art restorer for the late renowned artist.
This is an impressive adult dramatic saga incorporating the two separate stories of the original artist - Anna Dale, and the contemporary restorer - Morgan Christopher. Told with time shifts back and forth between the two stories, there is a slowly unfolding revelation of the drama that led to the mural's disappearance. The process of art restoration is overseen by the interesting gallery administrator and there are stories of family disharmony and restoration woven through the saga. Diane Chamberlain is a master of the romantic and historical narrative, and this is the kind of book that would be enjoyed as a 'holiday' selection because of the revelation of the mystery and social drama across the generations within the 385 page narrative. Although this is an adult story, it could be read by mature YA readers.
Recommended for adult readers. Themes: Historical drama; Art restoration; Racial discrimination - USA; Romance; Murder mystery; Sexual Assault
Carolyn Hull

Jan 17 2020

The Little Grey Girl by Celine Kiernan

The Wild Magic trilogy Book 2. Walker, 2019. 217 pp. 9781406373929. pbk.
In the first book in The Wild Magic trilogy, Begone the raggedy witches, Mup realises that she has magical powers. The Queen from across the border, her grandmother, uses her magic to keep control over her subjects and when she flees with the raggedy witches, Mup's mother is the obvious replacement, but she does not want the power nor does she want to be queen. She is persuaded to leave her own home and move to the Glittering Lands guiding her daughter, Mup, and her husband and their son, Tipper, now a dog, over the strange waterway which marks the entrance to this mysterious place.
The second in the series, The Little Grey Girl, takes up the story as Mam is declared queen, protesting all the while. She is besieged by petitioners, and heads back into her mother's castle to think about what to do next. But during the night, Mup sees a mysterious little grey girl in the courtyard, and calling Crow they go to investigate. It has been snowing fiercely, and Mam's adviser, Firinne, has warned her that this is the old queen's curse and to be watchful.
The castle is still full of memories of the tyrannical past, and Mup grapples with the question of free will, as her mother encourages the people to make up their minds for themselves; she will not tell them what to do.
The characters in this beautifully written book are exceptional: Mup with her strong moral centre is brave and disarming, able to throw lightning from her fingers to keep herself protected from the forces of the evil she feels all around, while Crow the bird that can change into a boy speaks in rhyme.
But the little grey girl intrigues; is she a threat, either a a raggedy witch or someone who needs help. With the long dead Dr Emberly and Crow, Mup descends to the dungeons beneath the castle following the little grey girl, to find out about the drawings she leaves on the walls, which cause such distress. But to find the core of the problem they must fight the dog which holds all the sadness the little grey girl takes from people, a fight which could lead to their deaths.
Kiernan's voice is unique, taking its readers along brave new paths, involving them with a strong, independent young girl hesitantly using her magical powers, but always aware of how it will affect those around her.
Fran Knight

Jan 17 2020

My book with no pictures by B.J. Novak

Puffin Press, 2019. ISBN: 9780241444177. 40pp. pbk.
(Age: All) Recommended. The book with no pictures is a fun story and this book makes that story even more fun by letting people fill-in-the-blanks and write their own words.
Kids of all ages can have fun putting different words into the story to make it as funny as they like. It would appeal to all ages, as anyone can add words into the story.
Kids can have fun filling in the blanks and then getting their parents or teacher to read it.
This book can be used to encourage reluctant writers to create a fun story using the scaffolding of the book with no pictures.
I enjoyed reading this book and recommend it to anyone with a sense of humor.
Karen Colliver

Jan 17 2020

Slay by Brittney Morris

Hodder Children's Books, 2019. 330pp. ISBN: 9781444951721. pbk.
Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) are a combination of role playing video games and online games in which a very large number of people interact with one another within a virtual world. As an older reviewer I found I had to immerse myself in the terminology in the book, using the internet to find answers, then jumping into the gaming word portrayed. Most readers of this book will find a more comfortable affinity with the world created by Morris to tell her story about racial inequality in the USA. This multi layered and complex issue is displayed by a range of characters: Kiera, one of four Black students at Jefferson High is peculiarly asked for her opinion as if she is the spokesperson for all Back people, Steph, Kiera's sister is a promoter of African American Vernacular English, Malcolm Kiera's boyfriend is desperate for them both to be accepted into Spelman College, one of the foremost HBCU places (Historically Black College) where he feels he will not have to compete with white students, while Kiera's white friends ask her if it is OK to wear their hair in dreads, or wear an Indian headdress to a fancy dress party. Kiera retreats into the digital world she has created, Slay, where all of the players are black and in playing, understand the rules of the game. And here she can be herself.
Morris very cleverly places all the characters into positions where they are able to reveal the racial tension that underlines their lives. But the game is above all this, or so Kiera believes.
When she finds that one of the players, Anubis has been killed over the paper money used in the game, she is appalled. Not knowing that she is the developer, her friends and family discuss the issues that this Black game creates: is it anti white, discriminatory, is it racist, what happens when the developer is discovered, will he or she be sued for the boy's death? Kiera must solve the crime and the last half of this engrossing tale hangs on crime detection as she and Steph and her friend in Paris untangle the web of clues hidden within the game, leading to a neat resolution with a twist in the tale.
Fran Knight

Jan 16 2020

Going the distance by Beth Reekles

The Kissing Booth 2. Penguin, 2020. ISBN: 9780241413227. 368pp.
(Age: 15+) Noah has left for college while his girlfriend Elle and brother Lee navigate senior year in his shadow. Lee made the football team, but he's not quite the player Noah was, meaning Elle doesn't get much sympathy from Lee as she yearns for Noah. Lee is consolidating his romance with Rachel more and more, which means Elle becomes more and more friendly with the new boy to the group. Levi is cute if not a tad maudlin having been dumped by his girlfriend, since moving interstate.
Tension builds as Noah is pictured on social media, enjoying frat parties and meeting pretty college girls. High School rumours precipitate a showdown between Noah and Elle. Will their relationship survive or are new love interests the natural outcome of trying to sustain a long distance relationship?
Acclaimed adolescent author, Beth Reekles is on a winning YA formula with the success of her Kissing Booth series. Both manuscripts so far have been adapted for Netflix. The cliched romantic plot shies away from any number of modern, familial or social themes. Interesting that this volume in depicting the obligatory obsession of adolescents with romance is, according to the author, somewhat improved in the television manuscript. The comparison just may be a boost to both readership and views but certainly won't condemn the reality of peer pressure in the manner of the best of jarring and jolting YA literature.
Deborah Robins

Jan 15 2020

DK Life Stories

Dorling Kindersley, 2019.
Albert Einstein by Will Mara. ISBN: 9780241322918. hbk., 128pp.
Gandhi by Diane Ailey, illus. by Charlotte Age. ISBN: 9781465474636. hbk., 128pp.
Wil Mara has made Einstein's life story an engaging and fascinating look at this very complex human being, one whose ideas have shaken up the foundation of modern physics. As a patent clerk in Bern Albert had time to think about and discuss his ideas, publishing his four ground shaking papers in 1905, which made the academic world take notice. Teaching at Berlin he saw the rise of Fascism in the 1930's a direct result of the punishing Treaty Of Versailles which ended World War One. A committed pacifist he took the position at Princeton in the USA and there he was able to advise people on the road Hitler and his scientists were taking. The Manhattan Project grew out of his advice, paradoxically doing the very thing he thought countries should not do. Considered one of the greatest minds of the twentieth century, Einstein died in 1955.
The book on Gandhi has the same format, presenting to younger readers a leader of the twentieth century known over the world. It begins with his family and childhood in India where he became aware of the oppression of British rule. Moving to South Africa to work as a lawyer, their system of keeping black and white separate infuriated him, and he did all he could to support the underrepresented. He successfully developed the idea of satyagraha, a way of dealing with the British through non-violence and civil disobedience which was instrumental in winning India's freedom from British rule in 1947. This potted biography presents a flawed man who in developing ideas of peace and non violence influenced others who came after him such as Martin Luther King. Born in 1869, he was assassinated in 1948 by a fanatic who disagreed with his peaceful approach to non Hindus.
Divided into ten (Einstein) and 12 (Gandhi) chapters, the sentences are short and pithy, illustrations dot the pages and the whole is complimented with fact boxes, asides and photographs, designed to entrance the younger reader. A detailed glossary, most useful index, family trees, who's who and timeline of their lives are rounded off with a quiz that readers will love to try.
The books are part a series, DK Life Stories, and while the format may not immediately attract some readers, a teacher will be able to point them out to students as a valuable and involving source of information.
Fran Knight