A serviceable title in the “Disaster” series financed in part by the Ontario Arts Council. The author describes several recent hurricanes including “Mitch,” “Hugo,” “Andrew,” and “Floyd,” lists the eight worst hurricanes in the past 500 years, discusses how hurricanes are formed and measured, and interviews scientists who study hurricanes in an effort to help people prepare for them. She includes a few experiments designed to demonstrate concepts described in the text. The impact of the full-color photographs is frequently diminished because of their small size and the decision to border each in a colored box, rather like snapshots in an album. The three-column text is readable, but often abbreviated and amazingly pedestrian given the dramatic content. Describing Hurricane “Mitch,” the author notes: “About 400 crocodiles escaped from a science institute, adding to the danger.” Surely a second sentence could be added to tell the reader what happened. Or, regarding another storm: “About 2000 people were buried in the torrent of mud.” And? The author concludes with a glossary and index. Since it lacks the drama and visual appeal of Patricia Lauber’s Hurricanes (1996) or Seymour Simon’s Storms (1989), this should only be purchased where additional materials are needed. (Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2002
ISBN: 1-55074-906-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2002
paper 0-7894-4760-6 This entry in the Eyewitness Readers series offers children the insight that the trees that surround them are among the tallest, heaviest, and oldest living things on Earth. Keeping the language simple and flowing, Chevallier explains the difference between deciduous trees and conifers, the parts of a tree, and how trees grow. The author also shows how trees provide habitats for other creatures, and explains in easy terms their life cycles. Full-color photographs help readers visualize concepts—a tree’s canopy, its root system—that might not always be obvious, or visible. The book is geared toward beginning readers who are just learning to read alone, and will certainly help them see both the forest and the trees. (Nonfiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7894-4761-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: DK Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1999
In a meandering account of almost everything “earthlings” have thought about the Red Planet, Fradin (We Have Conquered Pain, 1996, etc.) explores such topics as the canals on Mars (signs that past inhabitants irrigated their dry planet?), and speculation on its vegetation, rock formations, and fossil microbes. Fradin opens with a discussion of the night sky, and how it was viewed by ancient people; he writes of the centuries in which Mars has influenced people on earth, from the naming of deities, a month, a day of the week, and babies; of the planet’s study through telescopes; and the launching of various probes, along with the revelatory photographs from the Mariner missions. Early planetary theory comes under discussion, as do such turn-of-the-century astronomers as Camille Flammarion and Percival Lowell, and more recent scientists, such as Carl Sagan. The author enlivens the text with quotes, photographs, or references to Mars from popular culture, e.g., Welles’s infamous “War of the Worlds” broadcast. The final section speculates on a Mars colony in the 25th century and travel beyond this solar system at speeds greater than light. Fradin may lose browsers; his enthusiasm for the topic allows him to leap from subject to subject with grace, but readers must follow him closely or they’ll lose the thread. This is an exhaustive catalog of the author’s areas of interest and study; those who share his sensibilities won’t mind going along for the ride. (full-color photographs, bibliography, index, not seen) (Nonfiction. 9-12)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-82048-8
Page Count: 144
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1999
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