Reading Level: Grade 4 Interest Level: Grades 3 – 8
Boasting cultural riches, Belgium is where readers dreaming of travel can experience castle-filled towns, visual and musical arts, and buzzing urban hubs. Each bright page of this title provides engaging text and photos, while labeled maps, a traditional recipe, a language feature, a timeline, and more give readers a chance to experience the nation from afar!
'The Country Profiles series delivers places from around the world into the hands of the reader using vibrant photos and fascinating facts. Each book delves into a different country and discusses various aspects of the country including: location, landscape and climate, wildlife, people, customs, school and work, food, celebrations, and more. Each title provides an immersive experience for the reader through a short introduction to words and phrases in each country’s language, instructions for a traditional craft, and a cultural recipe. The series includes unique, fun facts such as: In the book Norway, it explains how some Norwegians search for wild cloudberries in the summer. If the family finds a patch, they keep it a secret so that they can pick the berries the next year. South Korea discusses that their ice pops come in many flavors, including the Jaws ice pop. It is in the shape of a shark, is gray and purple on the outside, and pink on the inside. Each book includes an informative timeline that offers key dates in each country’s history. The factual pages at the end of the book aid in recapping each country’s information. A glossary, index, and more sources are included so that readers can access more information and understand key terms about the books. This series is excellent for early to middle grade readers to engage them in learning about the countries in the world and make great books for research.', Alana Jara, District Librarian, Clear Lake Community School District
