Here is an instance of book design being as exciting as the subject matter, and this subject matter is pretty wild stuff: the legendary and legendarily hellacious voyages of Ferdinand Magellan, James Cook, Ernest Shackleton, Thor Heyerdahl and Francis Chichester. A main body of text describes these maritime adventures, while a galaxy of artwork (with well-fleshed-out captions) orbits about the page: maps, archival illustrations, photographs and paintings. The overall effect is thrumming and busy but not frantic. The text is intelligently written and allows the miraculous nature of each voyage to propel the story forward. The extended captions are the color commentary, adding bright bits of information that round out the picture: the first sighting of St. Elmo’s fire, the importance of the spice trade to exploration, why it is difficult to shave on a sailboat. The selection of artwork is excellent: handsome, moody engravings; lively watercolors by the participants; photographs of Heyerdahl’s crew catching sharks by the tail; and a great picture of Chichester’s boat all roughed up in the heavy weather of 50-foot seas. In addition, fold-out pages range from a rather natty cutaway view of Chichester’s Gipsy Moth IV to Cook’s navigational triumphs; the one for Shackleton billows into six full pages of icy misery. Just the ticket for armchair explorers. (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7534-6574-5
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Kingfisher
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
An introduction to ancient Egypt and the Pharaohs buried in the Valley of the Kings. The authors begin with how archaeologist Howard Carter found the tomb of King Tut, then move back 3,000 years to the time of Thutmosis I, who built the first tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Finally they describe the building of the tomb of a later Pharaoh, Ramses II. The backward-forward narration is not always easy to follow, and the authors attribute emotions to the Pharaohs without citation. For example, “Thutmosis III was furious [with Hatshepsut]. He was especially annoyed that she planned to be buried in KV 20, the tomb of her father.” Since both these people lived 3,500 years ago, speculation on who was furious or annoyed should be used with extreme caution. And the tangled intrigue of Egyptian royalty is not easily sorted out in so brief a work. Throughout, though, there are spectacular photographs of ancient Egyptian artifacts, monuments, tomb paintings, jewels, and death masks that will appeal to young viewers. The photographs of the exposed mummies of Ramses II, King Tut, and Seti I are compelling. More useful for the hauntingly beautiful photos than the text. (brief bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-7922-7223-4
Page Count: 64
Publisher: National Geographic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Rabid fans might take a swing at this, but younger or less well-informed ones will get a better sense of how the game is and...
A crazy quilt of baseball high spots and memories, distilled from interviews with over 500 former major leaguers and managers.
Though stitched into chronological chapters and, despite the subtitle, covering 19th-century baseball too, Panchyk’s labor of love ends up less a coherent, unified whole than an anecdotal jumble of incidents, records, and firsts. He also seems determined to stuff as many names into his narrative as possible, so that familiar stars such as Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Ted Williams are nearly shouldered aside by a dizzying swarm of smaller fry. And though some offer personal reminiscences about how they broke into the major leagues, too many contribute only the vague platitudes that players still use. The illustrations are largely decades-old photos of players, tickets, and printed programs, and the history turns decidedly threadbare once it reaches the 21st century. Sidebars on nearly every spread mix miniessays on topics ranging from baseball nicknames to select no-hitters with at-times questionable hands-on activities; one suggests announcing part of a real game and then playing the recording back to an audience, which is possibly illegal, for instance.
Rabid fans might take a swing at this, but younger or less well-informed ones will get a better sense of how the game is and was played elsewhere. (index, timeline, resources) (Nonfiction. 10-13)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-61374-779-7
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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