(3) YA Voices from Colonial America series. These books offer thorough, well-documented information about the struggles and successes of early non-native settlers of Delaware and California. Primary material featuring writing by colonials is plentiful, appropriately embedded in a matrix of historical context by the authors. The books' art includes many reproductions of period illustrations (both color and sepia) and some photos of period documents and maps, with relevant sidebars. Reading list, timeline, websites. Ind. Review covers these Voices from Colonial America titles: California: 1542–1850 and Delaware: 1638–1776.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 We Are America series. Each book in this series begins with a look at one immigrant then goes into a general discussion of his or her country of origin and its customs and culture. Illustrated with black-and-white and color photos, the text contains solid information, though pronunciations of non-English words would have been helpful. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these We Are America titles: Dominican Americans, Pakistani Americans, Thai Americans, Greek Americans, Japanese Americans, and Swedish Americans.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(4) K-3 We Are America series. Each book in this series begins with a look at one immigrant then goes into a general discussion of his or her country of origin and its customs and culture. Illustrated with black-and-white and color photos, the text contains solid information, though pronunciations of non-English words would have been helpful. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these We Are America titles: Dominican Americans, Pakistani Americans, Thai Americans, Greek Americans, Japanese Americans, and Swedish Americans.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(4) K-3 We Are America series. Each book in this series begins with a look at one immigrant then goes into a general discussion of his or her country of origin and its customs and culture. Illustrated with black-and-white and color photos, the text contains solid information, though pronunciations of non-English words would have been helpful. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these We Are America titles: Dominican Americans, Pakistani Americans, Thai Americans, Greek Americans, Japanese Americans, and Swedish Americans.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(4) 4-6 American War Biographies series. Three Revolutionary war heroes (one turned traitor) and three Civil War figures are featured in these generally well-written, though repetitive, biographies. Timelines are featured in each copiously illustrated chapter, and sidebars cover such related topics as prisoners of war and other important persons. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these American War Biographies titles: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen, and John Paul Jones.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 4-6 American War Biographies series. Three Revolutionary war heroes (one turned traitor) and three Civil War figures are featured in these generally well-written, though repetitive, biographies. Timelines are featured in each copiously illustrated chapter, and sidebars cover such related topics as prisoners of war and other important persons. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these American War Biographies titles: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen, and John Paul Jones.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 4-6 American War Biographies series. Three Revolutionary war heroes (one turned traitor) and three Civil War figures are featured in these generally well-written, though repetitive, biographies. Timelines are featured in each copiously illustrated chapter, and sidebars cover such related topics as prisoners of war and other important persons. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these American War Biographies titles: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen, and John Paul Jones.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 4-6 20th Century Perspectives series. Twenty two-page chapters briefly cover topics such as "Prisoners of War" (Korean) and "Media Coverage" (Persian). The format sometimes creates confusion: subjects are not always connected, which makes it hard to follow the progress of the war. The overcrowded books are liberally illustrated with photographs, maps, and sidebars. Reading list, timeline. Glos., ind. [Review covers these 20th Century Perspectives titles: The Korean War and The Persian Gulf War.]

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(3) 4-6 Communicating series. A chronology of ancient Egyptian writing, developed through hieroglyphic, hieratic, and demotic script phases, explains how the Rosetta Stone was translated and used to elucidate details of Egyptian culture. Symbolic pictorial elements treated as decipherable codes makes the science of paleography accessible to report writers. Clear photos of artifacts appear on every page. Addresses, reading list, timeline. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 4-6 Communicating series. Each of these books describes encoded signaling systems in a similar format: an introduction defines the manner of sending/receiving messages (electricity, sound waves), and historical background describes code development and wartime applications. Tools, modern uses, and careers are covered, as well as modern computer encryption and medical technologies. Captioned photos accompany the readable text. Reading list. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Communicating titles: Ciphers and Codes, Morse Code, and Sonar.]

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 4-6 Communicating series. Photos of young people signing show that facial expression and hand gestures are both essential components of sign language, the language of the deaf and those communicating with them. A range of basic signs are depicted, including those for feelings, colors, relatives, numbers, and days of the week. The readable text concludes with a discussion of how signing differs around the world. Reading list. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 4-6 Communicating series. Each of these books describes encoded signaling systems in a similar format: an introduction defines the manner of sending/receiving messages (electricity, sound waves), and historical background describes code development and wartime applications. Tools, modern uses, and careers are covered, as well as modern computer encryption and medical technologies. Captioned photos accompany the readable text. Reading list. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Communicating titles: Ciphers and Codes, Morse Code, and Sonar.]

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 4-6 Communicating series. Each of these books describes encoded signaling systems in a similar format: an introduction defines the manner of sending/receiving messages (electricity, sound waves), and historical background describes code development and wartime applications. Tools, modern uses, and careers are covered, as well as modern computer encryption and medical technologies. Captioned photos accompany the readable text. Reading list. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Communicating titles: Ciphers and Codes, Morse Code, and Sonar.]

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 4-6 Communicating series. Hands, faces, even feet are part of the complex system through which we communicate with each other. The essentials of kinesics, or nonverbal language study, are presented in this book about the range of emotional expression in eyes and eyebrows, open and closed postures, and hand gestures. Cultural differences are explored. Photos and sidebars supplement the readable text. Reading list. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(4) 4-6 Historical Documents series. These books focus on the stories behind these historic documents with short chapters that provide a straightforward overview of their origins, rationale, application, and occasional controversy. Photographs, illustrations, and sidebars supplement the clearly written, although overly brief, text. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Historical Documents titles: The Mayflower Compact, The Bill of Rights, The Declaration of Independence, and The United States Constitution.

Reviewer: Cindy Lombardo

(4) 4-6 Historical Documents series. These books focus on the stories behind these historic documents with short chapters that provide a straightforward overview of their origins, rationale, application, and occasional controversy. Photographs, illustrations, and sidebars supplement the clearly written, although overly brief, text. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Historical Documents titles: The Mayflower Compact, The Bill of Rights, The Declaration of Independence, and The United States Constitution.

Reviewer: Cindy Lombardo

(4) 4-6 Historical Documents series. These books focus on the stories behind these historic documents with short chapters that provide a straightforward overview of their origins, rationale, application, and occasional controversy. Photographs, illustrations, and sidebars supplement the clearly written, although overly brief, text. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Historical Documents titles: The Mayflower Compact, The Bill of Rights, The Declaration of Independence, and The United States Constitution.

Reviewer: Cindy Lombardo

(4) 4-6 Groundbreakers series. The books in this series profile three explorers of North and Central America. The volumes focus on the expeditions and their effects rather than on the men themselves, and the two-page chapters provide only limited information about many aspects of the expeditions. The pages are illustrated with period reproductions and sidebars. Maps, reading list, timeline. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Groundbreakers titles: Francisco Coronado, John C. Frémont, and Hernán Cortés.]

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 4-6 Groundbreakers series. The books in this series profile three explorers of North and Central America. The volumes focus on the expeditions and their effects rather than on the men themselves, and the two-page chapters provide only limited information about many aspects of the expeditions. The pages are illustrated with period reproductions and sidebars. Maps, reading list, timeline. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Groundbreakers titles: Francisco Coronado, John C. Frémont, and Hernán Cortés.]

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman