Kids will love reading  gross facts and trivia of common practices from ancient times to present.  The format is colorful and small paragraphs of text accompany large photographs.  A facthound internet site offers titles and information about related books but some of the “gross” links are broken.  Books for further reading are written at a similar reading level and focus on equally gross topics!  The glossary includes words that were also defined on the pages on which they were introduced.  The index is arranged in sections: animals, blood, foods, history, human body, maggots, and meat to help one quickly find information.  This book will certainly be popular with those looking for fascinating facts the might make you gag!

This book is a terrific overview of what a beginning canoeist needs to know about the sport.  Different styles of canoes have different purposes.  Terms to know, equipment, and safety hints are explained.  Canoeing provides a unique way to experience the outdoors from a lake or river.  Particular skills are explained along with useful facts and things to think about when planning a trip.  One canoe destination mentioned in the book is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) on the border between Minnesota and Canada.  Highlighted words are defined in the glossary.  Books for further reading are written at a similar reading and interest level.  A factsurfer internet site provides even more information.

The title of this book says it all.  Everyone who has owned a pet has noticed some rather gross behaviors at one time of another.  This book explains the reasons behind the sometimes disgusting actions.  With each turn of the page, one reads about an odd fact of another pet.  Beginning with rabbits, often gross facts about cats, ferrets, dogs, lizards, rats, and hermit crabs are explained.  The pages are colorful, the photographs are large, and the text is easy to read.  Definitions of highlighted words appear at the bottom of the page as well as in the glossary.  Additional “gross fact” boxes include other related material.  Titles of other books to read are in the back with a facthound internet site and index.  An additional site from the publisher provides projects, games, contests, and quizzes just for kids.

The author of Bats at the Beach and Bats at the Library brings his friendly, fuzzy bats to a baseball game.  But this isn’t a human baseball game.  This is a bat baseball game.  At the beginning of the story, the bats arrive at a piece of grass under a striped canopy on the edges of a carnival.  Some play the game, while others watch, hanging upside down from the tent.  The story is told in rhyme, following the drama of the sport.  Lies includes traditional human baseball trappings, such as popcorn, a tiny microphone, and uniforms, and integrates them with things befitting the bats small stature (i.e. the foul lines are sprinkled using powdered sugar).  There are one or two awkward turns of phrase (i.e. “We feel ejected from the game!”), but overall, the rhyme is solid and the competitive drama is involving.  Readers view the sport through the perspective of a grandfather/grandson pair, which brings a measure of nostalgia to the story.  All in all, this is a fun bat adventure.

This is a wonderful manual.  It tells everything you need to know about the activity.  You are even given tips about attitude.  I learned about different types of cheerleading.  This book is very readable and informative. Lots of great pictures.

This book is so funny.  The girls in this story are into mischief nonstop.  There is never a dull moment with this imaginative pair.  This book is silly and believable.  The pictures add a lot to the story.

This could be called a coming of age story.  It’s very readable and deals with a lot of modern issues like divorce and parents finding other friends.  The story is interesting and shows that life goes on.  It also shows the ups and downs of school friends, too.  All in all a good read.

The is the folk tale story of the Town Mouse visiting his friend the Country Mouse.  The Town Mouse invited the Country to go the visit with him at His Majesty’s Court.  When they got there the country mouse was delighted at the fine food that they had before them to eat,  but he was very alarmed by the barking of the court dog.  The country mouse decided that the Majesty’s Court was not a very good place to be and went home to his “plain food and … peaceful cottage.”

Some of the words are hard for the kids to understand but they understand the story.  This is a wonderful story for all to hear.

This book starts at 6300 BC and takes the through the history of transportation to 2004.   It has many interesting facts of different countries and how they evolved with transportation.  They use different forms and mode of transportation.  The pictures are fun to look at but I wish they had used real pictures where they could.  It is a great introduction to transportation and could inspire a child to look into more depth on the subject.

Twelve-year-old Zoe Bennett goes to a private school for gifted students, but she hasn’t yet found her own “gift.”  For Zoe, that’s a problem, though it is one that lots of public school students would probably be willing to trade for.   Still, with a sister who’s a talented actress and a brother who’s a math whiz, Zoe is seen as an outsider at her school, and is the prime suspect when mysterious notes start showing up in lockers around the school.

Though many kids may not identify with the special school, they will identify with a girl who feels like she’s not part of the “in” crowd.  And the all -too -familiar cliques, rumors,  and mean kids are here too.  Zoe finally does discover something she’s interested in when Lucas, the nerdy new student, drops his notebook,  Zoe sees that it’s written in code, and discovers that she can read it.

Classes in Zoe’s specialty, cryptoanalysis, might not be offered at most schools, but the lessons Zoe learns about making friends and fitting in are pretty much the same everywhere.

There’s an answer key for the ciphers, plus bibliographies with books on codes and ciphers, and also on Mayan civilization and writing.