Stylish and colorful this readable introduction to writing ones own graphic novel will be a hit with the comic book crowd.  Written for ages 10-12, it could certainly engage and prove very useful to the junior high or high school student.  Student writers will receive oodles of excellent advice on various topics, such as, setting the scene, characters and character building, building suspense, etc.  Of particular interest to me was the How to Use this Book intro which visually depicts in a linear fashion the writing process.  This book also includes a glossary, a “Further Information” section which includes websites and graphic novel titles and an index.

In this science project book, the author offers older students 16 plans…”to construct and explore working models that generate renewable energy.”  The directions are easy to follow; black-and-white simple photos help to visually depict the steps.  Safety is one-page addressed.  (Note:  Quite a few of these projects involve cutting, soldering, sawing, etc.  The young scientists must pay heed to the author’s Safety First section.  I wish the author had stated the need for adult help or adult supervision depending upon the age and ability of the young scientist.)  Each project includes a Materials and Tools list (websites are given on where to find specialized items) and  More to Think About questions.  Although the presentation of the book is not handsome, it is straightforward.  The topic is definitely current and relevant for today’s students.

This book does an excellent job in illustrating the interdependence of all creatures.  If we were to extinguish even one species, others would fail and the quality of the environment would drop.  The illustrations and simple explanations are easy to follow and understand.  This book would make an excellent resource in teaching habitats.

Attractive in design, this boldly colorful book will attract motorsport fans young and old!  The writing is clear and informative.  The book is logically organized with a wealth of information; chapters include a short historical perspective, “Motorsport Classes,” “Techniques and Technology,” “Tracks and Races,” “The Business of Racing,” “Racing Legends,” and “Teams and Machines.”  This engaging book will appeal to the casual reader as well as to the student who is gathering research information.  The color photos are definitely awesome eye grabbers.  The reference section includes U. S. Facts and Figures, a glossary, a resources section, and an index.

Author Catherine Reef offers the reader a well-rounded realistic portrait of the incredible life of Ernest Hemingway.  The text is concisely written and logically organized.  This biography is a great choice for students needing information on this fascinating writer AND it is a great choice for pleasure readers as well.  The black-and-white photos complement the text nicely.  The book includes a “Selected Biography,” a list of “The Major Works of Ernest Hemingway,” and an index.

Young children, especially boys, are fascinating by the large, heavy equipment used in road construction and building.  This book is especially appealing because of the bright, vivid colors and the photography used.  Each page just seems to pop out at you and demand your attention.  This book will be very popular!!

This is a book for those in need of answers to life’s big problems, like “where should I to go to high school”, or  maybe problems like  “how to get my own dog”.  With the help of  a cartooned illustration on each page to lighten the sometimes cumbersome text, Watanabe shows how to break down those seemingly impossible goals into bite sized chunks.  At first we learn about the many attitudes that keep us from our goals, like Sofie Sigh and Chris Critic.  Then the book offers many ways to organize and evaluate, like logic trees, rubrics, charts, and hypothesizing.   This book is not for the browser and may not be as “easy” as the title suggests, but it is a great tool for those with the determination to read through it.

This book is a fascinating play on words that the author dubs “the reverso”.  12 Folk tales inspire the poetry on each illustrated page but if you look further the real magic happens.  Each poem and illustration are split in two, both showing an opposite viewpoint of the same tale, but the poem itself is the same wording, only in reverse with a few punctuation changes. This book is perfect for browsers, as a companion to fairy/folktale studies or poetry units.

This book is a sure fire winner for students and adults alike.  This  well researched title is fully illustrated with engaging and detailed photographs and an engaging text that is packed with scientific information, brought to you in an easy to understand layout.  It chronicles the emergence of the Colony Collapse disorder discovered in 2006 and the importance of bees in our world. Inside you will meet the team of experts and be privy to their research as they try to discover the causes and solutions needed to save our agriculture and protect the hard working bee. Includes references and index

Because our sixth graders learn about Ancient China in their Social Studies book, I thought this book would help link Ancient China to the present.  Based on the title, I was expecting the book to enlighten the reader to the many inventions and practices we still use today.  While this is true, the laundry list of inventions that are named on page 4 pretty much cover this.  The rest of the book repeats these inventions (kites, dominoes, umbrellas, the martial arts, ice cream, matches, gunpowder, and fireworks), with just a few more additions (wheelbarrows, block printing, paper, and planting crops in rows).  Nicely done is a “Then” and “Now” comparison at the bottom of each page, linking the past to the present, but overall, their isn’t enough research provided.  Perhaps this book is simply too meant for a younger audience, leading to my disappointment as a middle school librarian.  It’s use in the middle school would be to offer it to ELL or Special Ed students as a general overview, or to be read aloud at the beginning of the Ancient China unit as an introduction to life in Ancient China.