I’ve read several books in this series, and I keep being disappointed.  They have a really good designer who has created a layout that makes for an attractive book to sit on the shelf, or pick up and flip through.  The covers are shiny.  There are lots of attractive color photos.  I just wish they’d paid more attention to the most effective communication of information.  These are dull and basically read like textbooks — a general overview of all the pertinent information on a very shallow level.  They miss so many opportunities to use the photos in a more effective manner:  when they are describing unusual fruits or animals specific to the country, likely to be completely unfamiliar to students from other parts of the world, photos would have been highly appropriate.

The illustrations are really cute.  The story is okay.  Edgar is a mouse who loves to build things from the food scraps he finds, but his best friend Toby keeps eating his creations, so he heads off to go where he will be appreciated, only to find mice everywhere keep eating his creations.  He heads home dejected, but finds a gift from Toby — his own set of inedible building blocks.  It’s fine, but I’m thinking the solution to the problem seemed a bit obvious.

Starting with Earth’s atmosphere and moving outward through our solar system to the Universe, this book covers the huge topic of space. The book attempts the difficult task of introducing complex concepts to young readers and does not quite succeed.  For example, the parts of the sun and atmosphere are labeled as if they are significant, but not description is included.  The diameter and orbit period of all the planets are highlighted in the solar system spread, but the terms diameter and orbit period are never defined.  Because of these shortcomings, comprehension for young readers would be limited to rote recall and opportunities to develop deeper understanding and draw connections would be lost.

Text and graphics are visually appealing.  Contains table of contents, limited glossary and no index.

The Super Simple Body series celebrates your amazing body.  With simple text, photographs, illustrations, and activities, this book describes the types of muscles, how muscles work, and the essential role of muscles play in everyday activities.

Pronunciation of anatomical terms are in parenthesis following the word.  Visuals include photographs and detailed illustrations with labels.  Limited glossary and no Index.

Wagari was a Kenyan trailblazer for women’s rights and the environment.  Growing up in rural Kenya, she was one of the few women in her country to read, let alone graduate from high school.  Wagari continued her education in the United States before returning to a newly independent Kenya.  Upon her return, she was devastated to see the scarcity of trees and animals.  She strongly believed her mother’s teaching that a tree is worth more than its wood.  Her efforts in environmental advocacy and towards peaceful democracy were internationally recognized in 2004 when she was the first African woman to be award the Nobel Peace Prize.

The text is reminiscent of African oral storytelling traditions.  This beautifully illustrated book concludes with photographs and a timeline with highlights of Wagari Muta’s life and Kenyan milestones.

Even a gray city can come alive when art is shared.  Mira loved art and she shared pieces of her art and through her art, her joy with her neighborhood making it a little less gray.  Then Mira met a man with a pocket full of paintbrushes, a muralist who showed her how to infuse the neighborhood with energy and light by adding color and meaning to walls.  As Mira and her neighbors painted their songs onto the walls, the community celebrated together and the color spread to utility boxes, benches and even the sidewalks.  Together they created something beautiful. And so the book invites us spread something beautiful, for the world is our canvas and we are all artists.

A Note from the Authors explains the book is based on the true story of the East Village neighborhood in San Diego, California and Rafael and Candice López.  The husband and wife team were instrumental in transforming their community into the artistically vibrant community it is today.  The illustrator, Rafael López was the inspiration for the character of the muralist.  López has created community-based murals around the world.

Set in South Korea, the origin story of Yumi’s jumoni (Korean Lunar New Year blessing pouch) is rooted in family.  Grandma cut her beautiful red silk wedding gown to make blankets for her children.  As her kids grew up, grandma made red vest and a quilt from the pieces.  Grandma then used the red silk of her vest to make Yumi’s blessing pouch.  The gift of the blessing pouch includes the gift of intergenerational family memories.  Grandma’s Red Silk Dress brings to mind the Yiddish folktale of a coat worn out and repurposed again and again until it is a handkerchief.  Used together, these stories provide authentic cultural and familial perspectives.

As part of a math series, the purpose of this title is to demonstrate the concept of whole and parts.  In the instruction of fractions, the unequal parts described in the story would confuse the concept rather than clarify for young learners.

A Tower of Giraffes introduces collective nouns for animals with intriguing artwork and interesting information on the social behaviors of a wide variety of animals. To this information Wright adds flavor with fun language such as her description of a flamboyance of flamingos; “There fancy feathered friends work together to make theatrical displays by posing like ballerinas and marching in time.”  Headings are in artistic cursive that will be difficult for many younger readers, though this book will shine as a read aloud.

This is a silly tale of three characters, Eenie, Meenie, and Harold.  Harold was supposedly in the bathroom when Meenie discovers a sword, then a shield and then a helmet in the stove.  Eenie is mellowdramatic about the whole series of events, even after Meenie starts to suggest that maybe the items are actually Harold’s, but he can’t quite put 1+1 +1 together.  In the end, the dragon gets them all, which was a surprising resolution that little boys might satisfaction with.   Illustrations slightly are reminiscent of the David Shannon books.  You medieval fans will flock to The Sword in the Stove.

My Dog Spot could become a classic for generations.  The simplicity of the illustrations and text make it accessible for preschool students through the recommended age of 8.  The tan-textured, recycled paper background for every page present uniformity and focus for the illustrations of the dog and his activities.  For librarians, this would lend itself to call and response because of the repetition of “My dog Spot…” throughout.  Spot is black and white, smaller than some but larger than others.  He likes to do all of the classic activities a dog likes to do.  I envision this text selling well with millennials who pine for suburbia while acting like they are tres chic.  The heart-felt preface written by the authors’ son just makes one smile.  Recommended as a gift and for all libraries.