(4) K-3 Read Me!: Pets Undercover! series. Pets "narrate" what they do while their human families aren't home. Photos and descriptions of instinctual behaviors explain how "wild" yet natural it is when cats hiss, stalk, pounce, etc.; and when dogs guard territory, bark, and chew toys. Simple, large-print sentences are suited to early readers. While hokey, the anthropomorphized first-person narratives encourage comparison with readers' own pets. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Read Me! Pets Undercover! titles: The Truth about Cats and The Truth about Dogs.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(4) K-3 Read Me!: Pets Undercover! series. Pets "narrate" what they do while their human families aren't home. Photos and descriptions of instinctual behaviors explain how "wild" yet natural it is when cats hiss, stalk, pounce, etc.; and when dogs guard territory, bark, and chew toys. Simple, large-print sentences are suited to early readers. While hokey, the anthropomorphized first-person narratives encourage comparison with readers' own pets. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Read Me! Pets Undercover! titles: The Truth about Cats and The Truth about Dogs.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(4) 4-6 Unstable Earth series. These titles present worst-case scenarios for each topic. Clear explanations of general problems come first, followed by chapters with specifics (e.g., oil drilling, pesticides) in text blocks. Increasingly dire projections for future decades and centuries are interspersed, complete with dystopian headlines. Small, individual mitigations are suggested on the last pages. Color photographs, charts, and other visuals fill busy spreads. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Unstable Earth titles: What Happens if the Ozone Disappears?, What Happens if the Rain Forests Disappear?, What Happens if We Overfish the Oceans?, and What Happens When an Ice Cap Melts?.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Unstable Earth series. These titles present worst-case scenarios for each topic. Clear explanations of general problems come first, followed by chapters with specifics (e.g., oil drilling, pesticides) in text blocks. Increasingly dire projections for future decades and centuries are interspersed, complete with dystopian headlines. Small, individual mitigations are suggested on the last pages. Color photographs, charts, and other visuals fill busy spreads. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Unstable Earth titles: What Happens if the Ozone Disappears?, What Happens if the Rain Forests Disappear?, What Happens if We Overfish the Oceans?, and What Happens When an Ice Cap Melts?.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(3) K-3 Dream It, Do It! series. With the suggestion of keeping an invention journal for inspiration and collecting thoughts and pictures, this is a simple guide to the process of taking an idea through to an innovation. Full-color photographs complement the well-organized text, which uses appropriately challenging words and concepts and offers journaling prompts throughout. Back matter includes a guided board game–creating activity. Reading list. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Pam Yosca

(4) 4-6 History in Literature series. This series effectively places literary classics in context without simply regurgitating plot and theme. The authors' biographical details are combined with historical and cultural background, some of which is vague (a too-broad overview of the 1930s in Mice) or confusingly anachronistic (a profile of Barack Obama in Mockingbird). All volumes are busily illustrated with numerous maps and archival pictures. Reading list, timeline, websites. There are five other fall 2006 books in this series. Glos., ind. Review covers these History in Literature titles: John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, Willa Cather'sMy Ántonia, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, and George Orwell's Animal Farm.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Turbulent Planet series. Beginning with a clear description of what it is like to experience each natural disaster, these books present an engaging, informative introduction to the origin, prediction and arrival of, and defense against the featured topic. Photos, maps, diagrams, sidebars, personal accounts, and an accessible text fill each busy page, adequately conveying the excitement associated with tumultuous environmental conditions. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Turbulent Planet titles: Wild Water, Shaky Ground, Storm Warning, Violent Skies, Heat Hazard, and White-Out.

Reviewer: Tamara DePasquale