(4) YA Biomes of the Earth series. Illustrated by Richard Garratt. Each volume of this extremely dense, textbooklike series first begins with a preface defining biome, next moves on to that biome's geography and geology, then covers topics including biodiversity, history, and ecology. The plethora of well-captioned maps, diagrams, charts, and inset text boxes and photos breaks up the highly scientific writing. Pages are color-coded for quick reference. There are five other spring 2006 books in this series. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Biomes of the Earth titles: Deserts, Grasslands, Taiga, Tundra, and Wetlands.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth

(4) YA Biomes of the Earth series. Illustrated by Richard Garratt. Each volume of this extremely dense, textbooklike series first begins with a preface defining biome, next moves on to that biome's geography and geology, then covers topics including biodiversity, history, and ecology. The plethora of well-captioned maps, diagrams, charts, and inset text boxes and photos breaks up the highly scientific writing. Pages are color-coded for quick reference. There are five other spring 2006 books in this series. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Biomes of the Earth titles: Deserts, Grasslands, Taiga, Tundra, and Wetlands.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth

(4) 4-6 Biomes Atlases series. Each book begins with a biome map and a description of the biomes of the world, then describes the climate, plants, animals, and cultures specific to the featured biome; geographic examples are interspersed. Packed with information and colorful illustrative material, the format is a well-organized if visually overwhelming cross between textbook and encyclopedia. There are seven other new books in this series. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Biomes Atlases titles: Deserts and Semideserts, Oceans and Beaches, Taiga, Tropical Grasslands, and Arctic Tundra and Polar Deserts.]

Reviewer: Hilary Breed Van Dusen

(4) 4-6 DK Secret Worlds series. While less than ten percent of this volume is devoted to tornadoes, the balance addresses not only "dramatic weather systems" but general weather concepts, meteorology, and pollution. The cluttered layout includes color photographs, charts, websites, and "Weird World" anecdotes to entice reluctant readers. A brief but useful reference section is included. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: CHristine Sarrazin

(4) 4-6 This oversized volume integrates color photographs with brief text to create a book suitable for browsing. Topics outside the scope of smaller overviews, such as wildfires, dust storms, and El Niño, are addressed in two-page spreads. The text is relatively challenging, though the book's lack of depth makes it unsuitable for research assignments. The book concludes with two pages of "weather data." Ind.

Reviewer: CHristine Sarrazin

(4) YA Dangerous Weather series. These dry, advanced-level discussions include detailed descriptions of atmospheric science and phenomena, as well as their effects on climates and global weather patterns. 'Chronology' is a year-by-year listing of notable weather events and scientific advances. Black-and-white photos and illustrations are included. A safety section in 'Floods' seems written for adult heads of households, not young adults. 'Chronology' has a bibliography and glossary. Ind.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(4) YA Dangerous Weather series. These dry, advanced-level discussions include detailed descriptions of atmospheric science and phenomena, as well as their effects on climates and global weather patterns. 'Chronology' is a year-by-year listing of notable weather events and scientific advances. Black-and-white photos and illustrations are included. A safety section in 'Floods' seems written for adult heads of households, not young adults. 'Chronology' has a bibliography and glossary. Ind.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.