A satisfying assortment of eye candy for browsers to discover and share.
A grab bag of figures and follies of the past, from the con artist who swindled a scrap dealer into purchasing the Eiffel Tower to a select gallery of sports the modern Olympics has dropped, like solo synchronized swimming.
The term useless is, of course, provocative, particularly when applied to knowledge—but here five researchers have worked hard to separate historical wheat from chaff and in general done a creditable job of dispensing with the former. Some of the anecdotal entries aren’t exactly trivial, such as a reference to how over 60% of the military casualties in the American Civil War were due to disease. But even when dropping names that would be, or should be, familiar to most readers, the authors usually go for lesser-known achievements such as Abraham Lincoln’s 1992 induction into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, or how fans’ demand for locks of his hair prompted composer Franz Liszt to get a dog and send “fur clippings” instead. There’s some myth-busting, too; no, Charlie Chaplin did not enter a Charlie Chaplin lookalike contest…and lose. A few illustrations, such as a view of Robert Peary literally shoving Matthew Henson aside (“Outta my way!”) at the North Pole, don’t come off as all that funny, but in general the wisecrack-laced cartoon art does add further comical notes. People depicted are racially diverse throughout.
A satisfying assortment of eye candy for browsers to discover and share. (index, glossary) (Nonfiction. 9-12)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781684495856
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Neon Squid/Macmillan
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2026
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care.
In 1977, the oil carrier Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of oil into a formerly pristine Alaskan ocean inlet, killing millions of birds, animals, and fish. Despite a cleanup, crude oil is still there.
The Winters foretold the destructive powers of the atomic bomb allusively in The Secret Project (2017), leaving the actuality to the backmatter. They make no such accommodations to young audiences in this disturbing book. From the dark front cover, on which oily blobs conceal a seabird, to the rescuer’s sad face on the back, the mother-son team emphasizes the disaster. A relatively easy-to-read and poetically heightened text introduces the situation. Oil is pumped from the Earth “all day long, all night long, / day after day, year after year” in “what had been unspoiled land, home to Native people // and thousands of caribou.” The scale of extraction is huge: There’s “a giant pipeline” leading to “enormous ships.” Then, crash. Rivers of oil gush out over three full-bleed wordless pages. Subsequent scenes show rocks, seabirds, and sea otters covered with oil. Finally, 30 years later, animals have returned to a cheerful scene. “But if you lift a rock… // oil / seeps / up.” For an adult reader, this is heartbreaking. How much more difficult might this be for an animal-loving child?
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care. (author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 9-12)Pub Date: March 31, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3077-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
IN THE NEWS
Playful, provocative, and packed with perspective.
Did Christopher Columbus really “discover” a new world? Did the Pilgrims invite the Wampanoag to a friendly First Thanksgiving? Is July 4 truly the nation’s birthday?
Readers familiar with traditional narratives of America’s founding are invited to interrogate those myths in this interactive exploration of early U.S. history. A strong introductory framework asks whose stories endure and whose have been erased from the history books, emphasizing that Indigenous peoples remain part of the present, not just the past. Each spread presents a common misconception, then asks readers to flip assumptions aside by lifting a partial gatefold that reveals the true story beneath. Well-sourced explanations elevate figures and communities often excluded from history books, including women, Black Americans, and Indigenous peoples. Bold colors, graphic-heavy layouts, and energetic illustrations that make creative use of historical photos and images break complex ideas into bite-size pieces that encourage browsing over linear reading. A timeline, speech bubbles, and lift-the-flap “True or False” quizzes reinforce the book’s core message: History is layered, debatable, and dynamic. Though the book’s busy, nonlinear design may prove challenging for some, on the whole it works very well as an engaging historical overview. The content assumes a foundational knowledge of early U.S. history, making it most suitable for older elementary readers, though some visual choices skew younger. Backmatter includes more historical information and background on the book’s creation.
Playful, provocative, and packed with perspective. (glossary, resources, photo credits) (Nonfiction. 9-11)Pub Date: May 26, 2026
ISBN: 9798888599082
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2026
PERSPECTIVES
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