Martin Oliver (1)

I came across this and its corresponding book for girls in the non-fiction section. According to the covers, they should be mirror images of each other, right? Both girls and boys doing awesome things. Maybe some school survival stuff. Mostly non-school-related survival stuff. But the contents of the book were quite a different story.

According to these books, here are things boys can survive:
-a shark attack
-a plane crash
-an earthquake
-whitewater rapids
-a swarm of bees

And here are things show more girls can survive:
-a bff fight
-tests
-shyness
-a fashion disaster
-truth or dare

To be fair, both books have a chapter on surviving zombie attacks (although upon closer inspection, the boys' book suggests hitting them with baseball bats, while the girls' book encourages running away). But what is the point of these matching books? That girls shouldn't (or couldn't) know how to survive disaster situations? That boys don't have to learn social skills or know how to pass a test? This baffles me. show less

This thin book gives straight forward easy to follow instructions on dozens of household tasks. Most of these activities I have done many times and did not find them worth reading; however, my daughter enjoyed reading the book and my son was thrilled when I gave this book to him. I really wished I had this book when I went to college. If you need to learn how to change a flat tire, iron a shirt, tie a tie or sew a button, this book is for you. I think it would make a practical graduation show more present. show less

Honest disclosure: I am writing this review as an adult, and not as a member of the intended audience which appears to be young teens. When my children were younger I might have bought this book for them, hoping to bypass the all-too-frequent nagging about how to do things. As a matter of fact, I did purchase books much like this. Then, when they had moved on in life and I cleaned up their rooms, I found these books, spines uncracked, on their bookshelves. There may be young people who will show more use and appreciate this compendium; I don't know them.
Some other quibbles:
1, If recipes are included, the directions should be accurate. For example, the recipe for a smoothie asks for a "small bag" of frozen fruit - how much fruit is that? The recipe for an omelet requires that the eggs cook for several minutes, then a few minutes more, and then another minute or two. These eggs will be solid as rock - the classic omelet is cooked in no more than two minutes.
2. Why do the directions for threading a needle come after how to sew on a button?
3. Dietary advice does not acknowledge that the reader may be vegetarian. show less

As the other reviewers have said, most of the information in this book I've learned over the years. However, there were a few interesting tidbits. Having said that, the book is well written and the tips are clearly outlined in an easy-to-read fashion with many illustrations. The tips range from cleaning around the house to laundry to how to tie a tie to some basic first aid.

There is a definite audience for this book - college-bound students or someone moving out on their own. I plan to pass show more the book along to my teen-aged son who, I'm sure, will find this very useful. show less