Seamus is our guide as we tour around his home country of Ireland. This book is part of the Follow Me Around series, which explores countries through the eyes of children. Along the way, students learn about the Seamus’ home, school, leisure activities, celebrations, and more. We learn about the capital, Dublin, as well as other cities and interesting places along the way. Ireland is known for many things: leprechauns, the Blarney Stone, four leaf clovers and limericks (there are five in the book!). But, Ireland is also a place with an amazing history and Seamus gives the us a few facts, which will send students off to other books and the internet for further exploration. Who wouldn’t want to learn more about bog people and fairy forts?

This book has the typical nonfiction elements: index, glossary, maps, table of contents and timeline. The pictures are colorful and the text is clean and succinct. This book and the rest of the series is recommended.

Our guide, Harisha, takes us on a tour of her home country of India in this installment of the Follow Me Around series. We learn much about Indian culture and history from Harisha’s perspective, including the foods she eats and her school life. Traditional celebrations are discussed and directions for an Indian mirror are given. There are many facts presented in short paragraphs with accompanying illustrations. We also learn to count to ten in Hindi and see several basic yoga poses, which originated in India. A timeline gives some basic historical information and a traditional Indian tale is introduced by Harisha.
There is a lot of information in this slim volume of only 32 pages. It is colorful and engaging to the reader. It is very accessible and students will enjoy the perspective of a child their age. This is a recommended purchase for those looking to update their tired social studies section!

Fausto is our guide through the country of Italy. The information is given from the perspective of a young boy, who takes us to his apartment and school, explaining his family’s activities and lifestyle. We learn about traditional Italian foods and famous people/things from Italy. Two large cities, Rome and Venice, are described and Fausto tells us about celebrations and leisure activities. Fun facts are presented in a couple of two-page spreads (You Won’t Believe This! and It Came From Italy). There is also a comparison chart (U.S. vs. Italy) and a Guessing Game with more facts.

This book does a great job of getting a lot of information out in a relatively few pages, keeping the reading engages all the while. The time-line only goes to 1946 But, that’s understandable when it starts in 753 BCE! There is a nice map at the beginning to help us get our bearings and a nice page of travel preparation tips for would-be world travelers.

The illustrations are crisp and well done and the text is clean and, at times, colorful. Typical nonfiction features include table of contents, index, glossary, time-line and web address for further exploration.

This is part of the Follow Me Around series, which is recommended for updating your social studies section. It is very accessible and engaging.

Ksenia is a child in Russia, who takes the reader on a tour of her country, culture and history. Starting with the question “Where in the world is Russia?”, Ksenia takes the reader to her home, school, Moscow and St. Petersburg. She then tells the reader about celebrations (with a fun recipe for blini) and leisure activities. Interspersed throughout are fun facts, counting from one to ten, comparisons between the United States and Russia as well as a time-line and information about travelling to Russia.

This book is part of the Follow Me Around series and includes the requisite nonfiction features: index, glossary, time-line, table of contents and map.

This is a great introduction to Russia and using a child as a ‘guide’ makes it very accessible and interesting for young readers. Students can use this book for reports or general interest and will definitely continue to explore information about the country. There is just enough to whet their appetites for more! This is a great book for those intending to update their social studies collection. Recommended.

Pig the Pug is at it again. We know he has a hard time sharing, but now we learn that he HAS to win or “it just ain’t fun”. One day, he and his long-suffering friend, Trevor (the dachshund) were eating dinner and Pig challenged him to an eating race. It’s a good thing that Trevor had apparently taken first aid, because he had to use the Heimlich Maneuver on his gluttonous pal, Pig. Instead of a thank you, Pig said exactly what we expected…”I win!” There’s a bit of Karma at the end of the story, because the bowl that Trevor dislodged from Pig’s throat ended up ricocheting off the wall and hitting Pig on the head. Does that stop his cheating? What do you think?

Illustrations are wonderfully goofy and kids will love the expressions on the faces of Pig and Trevor. White backgrounds make the dogs “pop” on the pages and move the story along.
This is a great companion book to Pig the Pug and can start some good conversations about friendship, kindness, and sportsmanship. Books that highlight these attributes are in high demand, and Pig does a great job of showing kids how you shouldn’t act! Recommended.

Part of a six book series on all things involving a horse and a rider, Intro to Eventing is a great introduction to three main events of the equine triathlon: dressage, cross-country and show jumping. The book starts with a story from the 2000 Olympics and then moves into the history of the sport. After that, the chapters move into each part of the triathlon with a discussion of what is is, equipment and attire needed, the scoring and some strategies. There are photos throughout and a page with further internet resources. Typical nonfiction features include a table of contents, glossary and index. Your horse-loving kids will keep this book checked out.

Readers who are car enthusiasts will enjoy Tesla Model S. This book, part of the “Car Crazy” series, is a high interest-lower level book. As such, there are usually four to six short sentences per page and lots of illustrations. Words that might be unfamiliar are bolded within the text and explained in the glossary. Other nonfiction elements include table of contents, index and nice box of tesla specs that will excite the readers (top speed of 155 mph? Wow!). Add this book to your collection for those lower level readers who love to talk about cars.

Squids is a great introduction to this wily cephalopod. The text is manageable and words that might be unfamiliar are bolded and defined in the glossary. There are plenty of photos, many labeled, that illustrate the information presented. The ‘chapters’ are well-organized around squid relatives, diet, life cycle, predators and anatomy. Typical nonfiction features include a table of contents, index, glossary and extra resources for further study. This book is part of “Ocean Life Up Close” series and a good addition for those libraries that need updated materials.

This book is set in the 1830’s near the Amazon jungle, when most of a scientific exploration party fails to return to the ship. Those that return bring something evil with them that might destroy the rest of the crew aboard the Polaris. The crew mutinies, kills the captain and abandon ship after attempting to blow it up. They leave behind the youngest crew members led by twelve year old Owen, the ship captain’s nephew. This ragtag bunch of kids decide that the only way to survive is to sail the ship themselves several hundred miles to the United States. Unbeknownst to them, there is a horrible creature below decks, who used to be an adult shipmate that was sickened in the jungle. He doesn’t look very human anymore and becomes less human as the trip progresses. They attempt to keep him/it trapped below deck, but that is where the food is. So, they face starvation, storms, and an angry, hungry creature on their journey to civilization.
Polaris is a book that keeps the reader immersed in the action and eager to find out what will happen next to the brave group of kids. Do they survive? What happened to the man below decks and will it infect them or will he/it eat them first? This story is equally historical fiction, science fiction and horror and will keep readers up at night as they devour this action-packed book.
The author’s note at the end explains the basis for his story – the 1830’s as a time of great scientific exploration (most notably, Charles Darwin aboard the HMS Beagle) and the ‘zombie bug’ fungus (a real Amazonian fungus that infects ants and directs them to march back to their colonies where the fungal spores are released from the hosts’ heads to the rest of the colony – this kind of stuff can’t be made up…it’s nature!). Fortunately, for humans…these kind of things don’t jump between species…we hope.