CURIOUS COMPARISONS

Crisp, full-color photographs illustrate sparsely worded comparisons of randomly selected objects and ideas.

The opening page states: “Everything you will see in these pages is shown at its real-life size: it’s a life-size book.” The word “almost” should have begun the sentence, but most viewers will understand and forgive two long-distance shots. The first spread—as in most others—is not the simple size comparison implied by the cover art. A snail has moved across a piece of bright green graph paper, the text explaining that it took the snail two minutes to travel the 10-inch trail. (Most, but not all, English measurements are followed by metric equivalents.) It is left to readers to make comparisons of, for example, their own speed with a snail’s pace. In fact, most of the engaging photographs—often of animals—are used to highlight facts related to all kinds of measurements in our wide world. A vivid image of a hand squeezing an udder leads to a foldout showing some of the approximately 95 glasses of milk from a cow’s daily output. The number of grains in a sand pail is compared with several countries’ combined populations. Humor ranges from whimsical (the observation that “time can be measured in colors” accompanies a changing lineup of deciduous leaves) to silly (a Saint Bernard’s owner is about to step into a one-pound “surprise gift”). Wry commentary adds to the fun while backmatter supplements all facts.

Entertaining and quirky.