Rosie Dickins

Not sure what my thinking was when I purchased this. I think I saw it as a great introduction to art for my son. But I've just finished reading it and not quite sure whether it was great for me or for my 15 year old. Probably both. The language is very simple; the short sections make it easy to digest; there are on-line links..but not to Usborne's own art collection but to public collections in national galleries etc. It probably should have something in the title about Western Art because show more there is no discussion there of Asian Art, or Pacific Art or Latin American Art etc. But this is a minor criticism really. There are a number of nice personal vignettes such as Caravaggio killing a man over a game of tennis and having to flee the country. I think they have managed to pack a lot of art and art history and art theory into a well illustrated and entertaining book. Certainly easy to read....I learned a lot from it. Happy to give it 5 stars and will be recommending it to my son.....whether he will read it is another issue. show less

What a fun book this is! With colorful cartoonish illustrations and over 90 flaps to lift, it might appear to be for little kids, but there is a lot of information introduced. Topics include: atoms and atomic structure, molecules, compounds, states of matter, chemical reactions, the origin of atoms, nuclear fission, radioactive decay, and the periodic table. Perfect for my third grader with an interest in chemistry.

Why on earth don't they have a picture of this book? It's pretty! Oh, well.

Sonny and I are reading this, too. It's exactly what its subtitle calls it: a complete introduction for beginners. It's a good-quality hardcover and has a nice heft without being unwieldy. It lays out the basics of what to look for in art (mostly paintings), which this non-visual reader really appreciates. It also gives a lot of historical context for art -- how the Catholic-Protestant split impacted art in northern show more and southern Europe, for instance. I wish there were a little more of that sometimes. I know this means I'm an official moron, but telling me about 17-century art in "the newly independent Dutch Republic" (without telling me what they're newly independent from) only reminds me I'm stupid while doing nothing toward a cure.

Nevertheless, I highly recommend this book. My 14yo son started off in our reading with a strong sense that he found art boring; we're not even halfway through the book, and he doesn't think that any more. show less

This book is very informative without being overwhelming. There is a balance of graphics (famous paintings) and, captions, and explanations. The author does not sacrifice correct terminology for the targeted age group, but rather, includes simple definitions in parentheses. I was very impressed with this resource and it exceeded my expectations.