Elizabeth Carney (1)

I'm a bit of two minds about National Geographic's historical and biographical easy readers. On the one hand, some of them have been really excellent like Rosa Parks. On the other hand, I still find it difficult to find readers for these more complex nonfiction titles and am skeptical about many of them having an audience that will understand the context.

This is a level 3 National Geographic Kids easy reader, so it's fairly difficult. They recommend them for "fluent" readers. The book is 48 show more pages long and has chunky paragraphs of text on each page, as well as black and white photos. The author takes the reader through the reasons people came to America, how they were processed through Ellis Island, and what happened to many immigrants afterwards. It also talks about famous immigrants and how Ellis Island became a museum. There are many quick facts mixed into the book, a quiz at the back, picture glossary, and index.

I'm torn about this one and I'm not sure I should have bought it. I like having more diversity in subject and National Geographic does a good job with these, but I am really doubtful that it will find an audience.

Verdict: I'll have to see if it actually checks out.

ISBN: 9781426323423; Published 2016 by National Geographic Kids; Purchased for the library show less

I like this book. I really enjoy how the author makes this book a competition between cats and dogs. For example, on the first page the author states “Who nose best?” then continues to state facts about cat’s noses as well as dog’s. At the bottom of the page it states “Winner: Dogs!” This makes the information really engaging for children. I also like how the book contains real-life pictures of cats and dogs. This gives the reader an accurate picture in their head as they are show more reading the information. I also think that the book is really interactive for children. For instance, on every few pages there are questions with the answers written upside down right next to it. This helps children to stay engaged in the book as well as give them funny jokes and extra facts to become excited about. Overall, the main message of this book is to inform readers about cats and dogs. Also, it shows readers all about how these animals are similar and different. show less

Kearsten says: This full-color book about frogs is great! The color photographs are bright, detailed (close-up when necessary) and labeled clearly with the frog names. The sentences are clear and at about a first/second grade level, and scientific or unfamiliar words are simply defined in a contrasting colored box on the same page spread in which the word is used.

In addition to being eye-catching, the book is very informative and interesting, with lots of fun facts - for example, if human show more tongues were as long as frogs' tongues, they'd reach to our navels!

Highly recommended - fun and interesting!

S says: "Some books are fun, some books are about hopping animals, and some books have hoppy, hoppy fun when they have a dance to learn! I liked this frogs book because it tells you about lots of frogs and what kinds of frogs are poisonous and what kinds aren't. I also liked it because it shows you lots of cool information in the colorful pictures. It also has funny frog jokes - hah hah hah! I think this book would be good for first graders and up." show less

This is a good choice for libraries looking to update their solar system bookshelves with a book on Mars that covers developments through 2016. It is a fun and comprehensive introduction to Mars and Mars exploration, featuring lots of topics of current interest (astrobiology, the search for present and past water) as well as up-to-date summaries of the latest Mars explorers. There's a two-page spread on Curiosity, followed by a pages on planetary protection, several on what we have to do to show more prepare for human exploration, and a final spread on terraforming. show less