Part of the Amazing Adventures series, this book details the work of some pioneers in aviation. Photos and interesting facts about each aviator and subsequent place in history are presented in an engaging and accessible way in two to four page spreads. There is a nice mix of well-known aviators like the Wright Brothers along with lesser known pioneer aviators like Dr. Hugo Eckener, who became the first person to fly an airship around the world.
Typical nonfiction features include a table of contents, glossary and index. Photos are clear and captions and short text blocks explain the photos quite well.
This nonfiction is geared toward those upper elementary students who might be at a second to third grade reading level. The information will keep them reading and the text will help them feel successful as readers with books that are interesting to them. Buy this book for your struggling readers. They will be hooked!
Part of the Amazing Adventures series, this book details the work of some pioneering explorers. Photos and interesting facts about each explorer’s journey and subsequent place in history are presented in an engaging and accessible way in two to four page spreads.
Typical nonfiction features include a table of contents, glossary and index. Photos are clear and captions and short text blocks explain the photos quite well.
This nonfiction is geared toward those upper elementary students who might be at a second to third grade reading level. The information will keep them reading and the text will help them feel successful as readers with books that are interesting to them. Buy this book for your struggling readers. They will be hooked.
Part of the Amazing Adventures series, this book details the work of some pioneering astronauts. Photos and interesting facts about each astronaut’s work and subsequent place in history are presented in an engaging and accessible way.
Typical nonfiction features include a table of contents, glossary and index. Photos are clear and captions and short text blocks explain the photos quite well.
This nonfiction is geared toward those upper elementary students who might be at a second to third grade reading level. The information will keep them reading and the text will help them feel successful as readers with books that are interesting to them. Buy this book for your struggling readers. They will be hooked.
This is the incredible story of the life of Tom Crean, an explorer in the Antarctic during the ‘golden age’ of exploration in that area. He was part of three expeditions to the Antarctic, two with Robert Scott and one with Ernest Shackleton. His first trips were with Captain Scott – one on the Discovery to set up camps and later on the Terra Nova, Scott’s final ill-fated voyage. This expedition was a race to the South Pole which ended with Scott and two men dying and Tom saving the lives of two others by hiking thirty five miles back to base camp for help. Tom joined Ernest Shackleton on his exploration of Antarctica aboard the Endurance, which was crushed by ice and sank, leaving the crew stranded. They hunkered down on Elephant Island and Shackleton chose five men (including Tom) to accompany him in a small lifeboat to South Georgia Island where there was a whaling station. This island was over 800 miles away through strong seas and winds. But, they had not choice. They made it to the island and Shackleton, Tom and one other man hiked over the mountains to the whaling station. Because of their bravery, ALL the sailors from the Endurance were rescued. Tom then spent several years in the Navy and retired to Ireland. He was a quiet and humble man, who was a brave hero.
An afterward gives more details along with a timeline and additional resources. A map on the front endpapers and illustrations of Antarctic animals on the back endpapers add to the wealth of information.
This book is a true gem. While the focus of many books are on the leaders of these expeditions, Scott and Shackleton, there were truly brave men that accomplished great things alongside them. Tom’s story needs to be shared and Jennifer Thermes has created a beautiful piece that will enthrall the readers. Told in present tense and illustrated in colored pencil and watercolor, this book needs to be on library shelves everywhere. Interestingly, I shared this book with a Falkland Islander and folks there are very well aware of Tom Crean’s story and he felt that the book was a good representation of his life.
