(3) 4-6 Wartime Spies series. These well-designed books examine the actions and motivations of spies during wartime. Using archival prints, photographs, maps, and some original illustrations, the texts follow the successes and failures of spies--including women and African Americans--on both sides of the conflicts. Timeline, websites. Bib., glos., ind. Review covers these Wartime Spies titles: Civil War Spies and Revolutionary War Spies.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(3) YA Spies Around the World series. This book gives readers insight into the activities of Israel's elite Mossad organization. Basic techniques of espionage are described, and brief accounts of successful missions, including the capture of Adolf Eichmann, the Entebbe rescue mission, and retribution for the Munich Olympic shootings, are also included. Photographs and inserts accompany thorough text on cleanly designed pages. Websites. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(3) YA Spies Around the World series. These books give readers insight into British and Russian espionage. Brief history of the country's spy operations, recruitment of spies, and examples of espionage techniques are described in both volumes; accounts of well-known spies, particularly those from the twentieth century, are also included. Photographs and inserts accompany the thorough text on cleanly designed pages. Websites. Bib., glos., ind. Review covers this Spies Around the World title: The KGB and Other Russian Spies and The SIS and Other British Spies.

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(3) YA Spies Around the World series. This book gives readers insight into America's espionage operations with emphasis on the CIA. The training of agents and how they operate in various settings are described; events from the Revolutionary War, Civil War, Cold War, and the conflict in Afghanistan are also touched on. Photographs and inserts accompany the thorough text on cleanly designed pages. Websites. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(3) YA Spies Around the World series. These books give readers insight into British and Russian espionage. Brief history of the country's spy operations, recruitment of spies, and examples of espionage techniques are described in both volumes; accounts of well-known spies, particularly those from the twentieth century, are also included. Photographs and inserts accompany the thorough text on cleanly designed pages. Websites. Bib., glos., ind. Review covers this Spies Around the World title: The KGB and Other Russian Spies and The SIS and Other British Spies.

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(3) K-3 Step into Reading series. A little background history surveys the topic from the first trains to the trains of the future, presenting solid but simply stated information about a topic young readers love. Photos illustrate train types and parts, holding interest with visual surprises such as an elephant emerging from a boxcar and a "pusher" in Japan packing people into a car.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(4) 4-6 Scary Places series. From Russia's alleged "secret subway" to the glowworm cave of Waitomo, New Zealand, unusual underground spaces around the world are engagingly (if superficially) explored. While the text focuses mainly on history and functionality, the double-page spreads highlight the places' sinister aspects through spooky photographs and skeleton-graphic sidebars. A map is appended. Reading list. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Rebecca Hachmyer

(4) 4-6 NHL: History and Heroes series. These volumes chart the histories of four National Hockey League teams. Profiles of prominent players and coaches, team lore (e.g., team curses and season-making victories), and quotes from famous players are included. Readers looking for detailed season-by-season facts, figures, and rosters will need to look elsewhere, but others will be satisfied with the basic texts accompanied by many action photographs. Ind. Review covers these NHL: History and Heroes titles: The Story of the Montreal Canadiens, The Story of the New York Rangers, The Story of the Boston Bruins, and The Story of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Reviewer: Ernie J. Cox

(4) 4-6 NHL: History and Heroes series. These volumes chart the histories of four National Hockey League teams. Profiles of prominent players and coaches, team lore (e.g., team curses and season-making victories), and quotes from famous players are included. Readers looking for detailed season-by-season facts, figures, and rosters will need to look elsewhere, but others will be satisfied with the basic texts accompanied by many action photographs. Ind. Review covers these NHL: History and Heroes titles: The Story of the Montreal Canadiens, The Story of the New York Rangers, The Story of the Boston Bruins, and The Story of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Reviewer: Ernie J. Cox

(3) 4-6 Baseball: The Great American Game series. Energetic sports writing imparts solid histories of the teams through 2006. Well-chosen quotations supply insight, as when Mel Ott says of Yankees catcher Yogi Berra: "He stopped everything behind the plate and hit everything in front of it." Cleanly designed pages feature many generously sized, visually arresting photographs. Throughout, outstanding position players are highlighted to form hypothetical "All-Time Teams." Ind. Review covers these Baseball: The Great American Game titles: The Story of the Atlanta Braves, The Story of the New York Yankees, The Story of the Boston Red Sox, The Story of the Chicago Cubs, and The Story of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin

(3) 4-6 Baseball: The Great American Game series. Energetic sports writing imparts solid histories of the teams through 2006. Well-chosen quotations supply insight, as when Mel Ott says of Yankees catcher Yogi Berra: "He stopped everything behind the plate and hit everything in front of it." Cleanly designed pages feature many generously sized, visually arresting photographs. Throughout, outstanding position players are highlighted to form hypothetical "All-Time Teams." Ind. Review covers these Baseball: The Great American Game titles: The Story of the Atlanta Braves, The Story of the New York Yankees, The Story of the Boston Red Sox, The Story of the Chicago Cubs, and The Story of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin

(4) 4-6 NFL Today series. These two titles hit the historical and current highlights of the Raiders, an AFL franchise begun in 1960, and the Panthers, an NFL team that played its first game in 1995. Though hardly comprehensive, these volumes make good introductions to the teams. Some of the full-page photos are grainy, but they lend strong visual appeal. Ind. Review covers these NFL Today titles: The History of the Oakland Raiders and The History of the Carolina Panthers.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) 4-6 Baseball series. These two books take brief looks at the hundred-year history of the Yankees and the young expansion-franchise Diamondbacks. The widely spaced text and full-page photographs of prominent players will appeal to young baseball fans. However, the illustrations would have had more meaning if they were captioned. Individual players' names in large print scattered throughout the book seem pointless. [Review covers these Baseball titles: The History of the New York Yankees and The History of the Arizona Diamondbacks.]

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(4) 4-6 NBA Today series. This book covers the history of the Celtics, from 1946 (the team's first season) to 1997, focusing on players and coaches who contributed to the team's success and "Celtic Pride." Full- and double-page color photos add little to the book. Fans will appreciate the competently written series, which contains twenty-eight additional books.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(4) 4-6 Ovations series. Written in mediocre prose, these slight biographies will still have appeal, especially for reluctant readers. Sports action, personal life, and the athletes' future ambitions are all included. Plenty of color photographs and a lot of white space on the page make the books user-friendly.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.