(4) YA Write This Way series. Each step-by-step, form-specific guide for middle school students maps the process of selecting a topic, gathering information, organizing ideas, drafting, and revising. Interspersed writing exercises and tips from well-known authors encourage new writers to discover what approaches work best for them. Unfortunately, a text-heavy layout may discourage leisurely browsing. Writing career advice is appended. Reading list, websites. Bib., glos., ind. Review covers these Write This Way titles: Writing Fantastic Fiction, Writing Outstanding Opinion Pieces, Writing Powerful Persuasive Pieces, Writing Intriguing Informational Pieces, and Writing Notable Narrative Nonfiction Pieces.

Reviewer: Rebecca Fox

(4) YA Write This Way series. Each step-by-step, form-specific guide for middle school students maps the process of selecting a topic, gathering information, organizing ideas, drafting, and revising. Interspersed writing exercises and tips from well-known authors encourage new writers to discover what approaches work best for them. Unfortunately, a text-heavy layout may discourage leisurely browsing. Writing career advice is appended. Reading list, websites. Bib., glos., ind. Review covers these Write This Way titles: Writing Fantastic Fiction, Writing Outstanding Opinion Pieces, Writing Powerful Persuasive Pieces, Writing Intriguing Informational Pieces, and Writing Notable Narrative Nonfiction Pieces.

Reviewer: Rebecca Fox

(4) PS Go Go Global series. "Around the world, / all the day through, / we lick and nibble, / chomp and chew." A singsongy rhyme takes young readers on a quick world-cuisine tour. Labeled with country of origin, the large photos feature mouth-watering dishes. Overall, not much substance--a good appetizer. World map and Common Core–aligned questions appended. Reading list. Glos.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) PS Go Go Global series. "Our arms can throw. / Our legs can run. / Our feet can dance. / Let's have some fun!" A singsongy rhyme takes young readers on a quick world tour. Each labeled with the country of origin, the large photos feature people from different countries, often in traditional dress. Overall, not much substance, but an adequate first meeting. World map and Common Core–aligned questions appended. Reading list. Glos.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 4-6 Snap Books: Girl Talk series. Illustrated by Julissa Mora. Aimed at a female readership, this is a lively and helpful series about everyday social topics that preteens struggle with. Using photographs and cartoony illustrations, the question-and-answer format covers a wide range of issues, from handling conflict to friends and family. A colorful (if excessively frilly) layout adds appeal. Reading list. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) 4-6 Snap Books: Girl Talk series. Illustrated by Julissa Mora. Aimed at a female readership, this is a lively and helpful series about everyday social topics that preteens struggle with. Using photographs and cartoony illustrations, the question-and-answer format covers a wide range of issues, from family changes to honesty and trust. A colorful (if excessively frilly) layout adds appeal. Reading list. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) YA Voices in Poetry series. Illustrated by Rob Day. In these revised editions, excerpts from each poet's work alternate with biographical passages describing major influences or periods in the artist's life. The arty design calls attention to itself; every page is decorated with a photograph (in Shakespeare's case, a drawing) or a themed illustration: flowers for Dickinson, historical postal stamps for Hughes, leaves for Whitman, etc. The tiny type may put off some readers. Ind. Review covers these Voices in Poetry titles: E. E. Cummings, Emily Dickinson, Langston Hughes, William Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe, and Walt Whitman.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) K-3 Language on the Loose series. Illustrated by Merrill Rainey. In Frog, each cleverly named member of a family communicates exclusively through one kind of sentence (e.g., son Exclamuel uses only exclamatory). In Whatever, a boy overcomes a chronic case of monotone expression ("ouch thatll leave a mark") thanks to punctuation. The purposeful stories are silly but memorable vehicles to reinforce sentence types and the purpose for punctuation. Reading list. Review covers these Language on the Loose titles: Whatever Says Mark and Frog. Frog? Frog!.

Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi

(3) PS Illustrated by Deborah Melmon. It's nonstop action as a busy--and hungry!--family gets ready for suppertime. The scattered activity finally comes to a halt when the family sits down to enjoy their meal. The jaunty and super-simple patterned text is brought to life by friendly, expressive illustrations of the family and their pets. A pleasing read-aloud that many families will identify with.

Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Sachiko Yoshikawa. A girl who sounds twice as old as she's supposed to describes her last day of kindergarten, first in melancholy terms and then with post-graduation-ceremony excitement. The story may resonate with rising first graders; more likely it's really intended to help parents deal with the fact that their kids are growing up. Yoshikawa's digital mixed-media illustrations nail a classroom's multicolored paraphernalia.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) YA With excerpts from the women's journals, tape transcripts, color photos, and explanatory paragraphs, the authors describe the 1992-93 four-woman expedition to the South Pole. The primary sources make the account highly immediate, acquainting readers with the difficulties of Antarctic life and the emotional and physical challenges each woman faced. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam