by Kira Vermond & illustrated by Clayton Hanmer ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2012
A good guide for beginners and browsers, but not suitable for research.
This chatty guide to money works to make the subject appealing to middle-schoolers but is regrettably short on sourcing.
Vermond first defines what money is: More than just dollars and cents, money is "an agreement between people in an economy." Since we can't steal the things we need, she explains, there are multiple ways to make money. Money can be earned by jobs that reward workers for their time and special skills. Alternatively, you could be an entrepreneur and take on the risk and rewards of starting your own business. Of course, there's also imaginary money, aka credit, and its associated perils of debt and interest. The importance of saving is highlighted, from simple self-control and delayed gratification to investing and the advantage of compound interest. The text zips along, accompanied by two-color line art and frequent sidebars, with information on such topics as ancient money and interviews with financial experts. The author has a talent for explaining finance in an enthusiastic, easy-to-understand manner, yet with no works cited or references listed, there are questions about where these facts and figures come from.
A good guide for beginners and browsers, but not suitable for research. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: March 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-926973-19-7
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 17, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2012
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by Kira Vermond ; illustrated by Suharu Ogawa
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by Kira Vermond ; illustrated by Clayton Hanmer
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by Kira Vermond ; illustrated by Suharu Ogawa
by Donna M. Jackson & illustrated by Ted Stearn ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2011
Starting with an overview of how researchers look at humor, this uneven guide to a topic with potentially high kid-appeal...
A light introduction to the appealing, complicated subject of humor lacks the depth to do it justice.
Starting with an overview of how researchers look at humor, this uneven guide to a topic with potentially high kid-appeal meanders through loosely connected aspects of humor, offering anecdotes, quotes from experts and intriguing facts. Short chapters touch on the anatomy of laughter and the history of laugh tracks. A longer chapter discusses how humor differs between genders, among cultures and age groups and throughout history. Readers may be most interested in the final chapter on stand-up comedy and how to be funny. Jackson relies heavily on quotes from interviews with humor experts, working their names and titles awkwardly into the text. The academic nature of the quotes, suitable to a more substantial study of humor, jars with the author’s otherwise conversational, entry-level approach to the subject, raising questions about the intended audience. Generic cartoonish pictures and occasional jokes in boldface type illustrate points made in the text. Short sidebars explore topics such as the funny bone, tickling and texting abbreviations about humor.Pub Date: June 9, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-670-01244-2
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2011
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by Donna M. Jackson with Carol Kinsey Goman
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by Donna M. Jackson and illustrated by Ted Stearn
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by Matt Lake & Randy Fairbanks ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2011
A browser’s delight, packaged to fit small coffee tables.
A tantalizing sampler of American roadside attractions, ghosts and spooky local legends for audiences not yet familiar with the TV show of the same name and its attendant series of state-by-state print guides.
Shoveled haphazardly into thematic chapters, the several hundred stopovers range from old reliables like Roswell, Bigfoot, jackalopes and the Watts Towers to various art car shows, festivals like the annual Roadkill Cook-off in West Virginia and such undeservedly obscure locales as New Jersey’s Shades of Death Road and Maine’s International Cryptozoology Museum. The authors supply a paragraph or two of credulous commentary on each that includes specific places and people along with back story and, for the more elusive or supernatural oddities, locally gathered rumors and anecdotes. Small but sharp photos—or melodramatic Photoshopped images for the various specters—on every page add both atmosphere and additional credibility for readers who may have trouble believing in, for instance, the many giant fiberglass “Muffler Men” dotting the Midwest or all the buildings shaped like teapots, picnic baskets and various foodstuffs. Readers allergic to exclamation points may want to skip this one.
A browser’s delight, packaged to fit small coffee tables. (Infotainment. 10-13)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4027-5462-3
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: June 6, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2011
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by Erin Frankel & illustrated by Paula Heaphy
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