Reviews
Booklist Review of Get Crafting for Your Hip Hamster
Part of the Playful Pets Projects series (6 titles), this guide for advanced-beginner or intermediate crafters outlines four projects kids can make and use with their hamster buddies. A Popsicle-stick house, carrot and hamster-seed cupcakes, a cardboard maze, and a fleece snuggle pouch… View →
SLJ Review of Off to Space!
An introductory astronomy set for the youngest readers. Most spreads have between one and four simple sentences on one side and a full-page color photograph (or photorealistic constructed image) on the other. Occassionally the text begins to present concepts that are more complicated,… View →
SLJ Review of Playful Pet Projects
The page of safety and cleanup instructions that prefaces each of these titles admonishes, “Never force your [pet] to do something it seems unhappy to do”–good advice for avoiding bites but also a reminder that consent applies to all creatures. Four projects include a toy,… View →
Booklist Review of Blow Up a Burger
This entry in the Deconstructed Diets series (6 titles) gets children thinking about the food they eat in multiple ways. First, it informs them that a diet is not a weight-loss plan but rather what we eat and drink in a day. Then the high-interest book, enhanced with easy-to-understand… View →
Super Science Feats: Medical Breakthroughs - Reviewed by School Library Journal
Large, clear photos showing petri dishes of bacteria, patients receiving vaccinations, or archival images of early researchers fill the pages of this series. Information is organized into short chapters with brief paragraphs on each spread and additional facts in “Did You Know?” text… View →
Big Cats - Reviewed by School Library Journals
Appealing photographs and basic facts introduce well-known wild cats. Short and simple sentences make the text accessible to new readers: “Jaguars are big cats. Their fur is tan. They have dark spots” (Jaguars). Question-and-answer sequences and interjections such as “Neat!” and “Wow!”… View →
Booklist Review of Clothing Warrior: Going Green
When your favorite pair of jeans gets too torn to wear anymore, what should you do? This entry in the Be a Waste Warrior! series (6 titles) offers numerous options, from patching to upcycling, that can help readers extend the life of their clothing and shop eco-consciously, whether… View →
Patrones en la naturaleza (Patterns in Nature) - Reviewed by School Library Journal
Patterns and textures take the spotlight in this Spanish series about where to find patterns in all kinds of natural environments, including forests, deserts, gardens, and beaches. Readers as young as three will benefit from full-page color, high-definition close-ups of butterflies,… View →
SLJ Review of Farmer Llama's Farm Machines
Information about big farm machines is wrapped into a very cute package as readers (and pre-reading listeners) are led around Farmer Llama’s land, learning all about the massive vehicles, how they work, and how they help farmers do their jobs more efficiently. Readers will learn… View →
Cabras en la granja (Goats on the Farm) - Reviewed by Booklist
In this installment in the Spanish language Animales de la granja series (8 titles), beginning readers will learn fun facts about goats. Each spread includes a labeled photo introducing goat body parts, diet, and behaviors, as well as differences between goat bucks and kids, paired with… View →
SLJ Review of Bearport Biographies
These six volumes provide an eclectic mix of notable personages. Each book begins with a description of a significant moment in the subject’s life: Michael Jordan winning the 1991 NBA championship, Jimmy Carter’s acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize,… View →
Great Wall of China - Reviewed by Booklist
The discussion opens with a history of China’s Great Wall, which began more than 2,500 years ago as segments built by warring kingdoms. After the first emperor gained control of all of China in 221 BCE, many of the old walls were connected to provide a… View →