IF STONES COULD SPEAK

Stonehenge is one of the most enduring and mysterious monuments in the world. For centuries, archeologists have spun theories on these stones’ existence—are they a Druid temple? An ancient calendar? A work of magic? In 2005, Mike Parker Pearson and the Riverside Project team made a series of astonishing discoveries that changed the way the world looked at Stonehenge yet again. In earnest and engaging prose, Aronson follows Pearson and his team. Extrapolating from a tradition from Madagascar, Pearson suspects that Stonehenge may actually be a burial ground that is intricately connected to another henge, built of wood. The author concedes that Pearson had to explain his theory many times before understanding sunk in—this may hold for readers as well. Visual learners will keep paging back to the overhead map, trying to follow the trail. But the sense of wonder and excitement rings true regardless. Pearson’s hypothesis is only one of many, and the author characteristically urges readers to question what they see and always keep an open mind, just like this endearing archeological team. (epilogue, timeline, glossary, author’s note, further reading) (Nonfiction. 10 & up)