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Adkins, Jan
6 Reviews
(3)
K-3
Adkins envisions Bertha Benz's historic drive of her husband's Benz Motorwagen III in 1888. Defying German law against motor vehicles, "businesswoman, mechanic, inventor, and revolutionary" Benz overcame multiple obstacles to complete the sixty-mile journey with her two sons. Depicted in rich digital illustrations, this woman's story should inspire both girls and boys to strive for success against difficult odds. Mechanical drawings are appended. Timeline.
Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg
(3)
4-6
Adkins attempts to dispel the popular image of the American cowboy--the ruggedly-handsome-adventurous-guy-in-a-white-hat stereotype fostered by movies and television. Nineteenth-century cowboy Jacob Peavey serves as a prototype that exemplifies the realities of the arduous and sometimes brutal world that existed on the Western frontier. Detailed sepia drawings add to the honest, informative narrative. Reading list. Glos., ind.
Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg
(3)
YA
Adkins isn't stingy with praise for "the most imaginative artist with walls and roofs and windows and doors anyone has ever seen." But he's also quick to point out Wright's egotism, dishonesty, and political naiveté, while chronicling the architect's childhood, marriages, love affairs, and prolific seventy-three-year career. Like the other biographies in this stand-out series, it's a balanced, thoughtful, well-researched portrait. Bib., ind.
Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger
(2)
K-3
A chatty text first presents and then dispels myths about knights. From medieval hygiene and castle design to the relationships of the feudal system, the narrative moves along in breezy fashion. Each topic receives a one- or two-page spread; the densely packed text is supplemented by even more compacted expatiations on various related subtopics. Small line-and-watercolor illustrations comment wryly on the text.
Reviewer: Vicky Smith
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
September, 2006
(3)
K-3
Each double-page spread is headed by a question, such as "Who got to be a pirate?" and "How did pirate ships sail?" The answers are provided in a clear text that presents basic facts about pirate life while dispelling some familiar legends ("walking the plank" was never an actual pirate practice). The color illustrations have a rugged quality well suited to the subject matter. Glos., ind.
Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta
(2)
4-6
Beginning with the earliest origins of bridge building, Adkins delves into the engineering skills involved in the task and the development of materials necessary to devise ever more complex structures; he also touches on the political, social, environmental, and fiscal problems that are frequently involved. The author's knowledge of history is as dazzling as his understanding of engineering principles. Glos., ind.
Reviewer: Mary M. Burns
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2002
6 reviews
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