(4) K-3 Pebble Plus: U.S. Military Branches series. These books for beginning readers provide extremely basic information about two branches of the American military. The texts briefly discuss the various jobs, weapons, and vehicles associated with each service. Every simplistically laid-out spread consists of two to five short, easy-to-read sentences on the left page and a full-page stock photograph on the right. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Pebble Plus: U.S. Military Branches titles: The U.S. Army and The U.S. Marine Corps.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(3) 4-6 STEM Trailblazer Bios series. The continuation of the series, this time featuring all-female science and technology innovators from modern history, will tie in well with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics curriculum objectives. The inspiring profiles touch on childhood, education, and the subjects' breakthrough accomplishments. A colorful, easy-to-read format features photos and "tech talk" sidebars with quotes, mostly from the "trailblazers" themselves. Reading list, timeline, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these STEM Trailblazer Bios titles: Nuclear Physicist Chien-Shiung Wu, Programming Pioneer Ada Lovelace, Animal Scientist and Activist Jane Goodall, Environmentalist Rachel Carson, Astronaut Mae Jemison, Mathematician and Computer Scientist Grace Hopper, Computer Scientist Jean Bartik, and Vaccine Innovators Pearl Kendrick and Grace Eldering.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(4) YA America's National Parks series. Older readers (and adults) will find this series useful for its coverage of six national parks' history, ecology, animal life, current challenges, and tourist attractions. Report writers, especially, may find the publisher's enhanced website a welcome shortcut to doing their own Internet research. Contemporary and archival photographs and web screenshots accompany the information. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these America's National Parks titles: Yellowstone National Park, Acadia National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Everglades National Park, Olympic National Park, and Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(4) 4-6 Inventors Who Changed the World series. This series provides a basic overview of each subject's life and career, including successes as well as mistakes and controversies. The series's design features well-reproduced archival photos and distracting, cluttered screen shots. Some less motivated readers will appreciate the publisher's enhanced website. Reading list, timeline. Glos., ind. Review covers these Inventors Who Changed the World titles: Thomas Edison, Wilbur and Orville Wright, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Henry Ford.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) YA Modern World Leaders series. By placing the featured leader in a historical context, this series, part history and part biography, challenges the reader to consider the concept of leadership. Each book features a comprehensive discussion of the subject's childhood experiences and rise to power, significant historical events, international relationships, and ideology. The text is dense; some photographs and drawings help break up the pages. Reading list, timeline. Bib., ind. Review covers these Modern World Leaders titles: Jacques Chirac, Tony Blair, George W. Bush, Hugo Chávez, The Saudi Royal Family, Pope John Paul II, Vladimir Putin, and Pervez Musharraf.

Reviewer: Tamara DePasquale

(4) YA Authors Teens Love series. Lightweight biographies detail their subjects' lives, heavily focusing on anecdotes that reflect on and demonstrate their development as authors. The overwhelmingly upbeat texts are meatier when exploring the controversies of the authors' works, most apparent in Pullman; Card and Danziger are more concerned with their subjects' lives. Color photos illustrate each volume. Reading list, timeline, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Authors Teens Love titles: Paula Danziger, Philip Pullman, and Orson Scott Card.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(3) 4-6 Deadly Disasters series. Following a scene in which the featured natural disaster wreaks havoc, each book describes how it forms and where it generally hits, then concludes with tips on staying safe when up against the great force. Recurring throughout are gripping testimonials of survivors and rescue workers, and arresting photos of the disasters and the wreckage they leave behind. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Deadly Disasters titles: Tornadoes and Earthquakes.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) 4-6 Deadly Disasters series. This capable overview covers AIDS's composition, its likely origin, how it's contracted and treated, the interplay of AIDS with poverty, and the epidemic's proliferation in Africa, Asia, and the United States. Particularly effective are the profiles of infected young people, the examination of AIDS's impact on family structure, and the candid photos of AIDS sufferers and educators. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) 4-6 Great Minds of Science series. After discussing how some of da Vinci's ideas apply to airplanes and summarizing his achievements, this text expands on those Renaissance achievements. Painting, optics, architecture, astronomy, meteorology, the human body--these and other subjects filled his notebooks, black-and-white illustrations from which are reproduced here, along with several contemporary photos. A few activities conclude the presentation. Reading list, timeline, websites. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Great Disasters: Reforms and Ramifications series. These two series books ably discuss public-health disasters of the late twentieth century: the Indian city's deadly chemical leak of 1984 and Niagara Falls's chemical-waste scandal of the late 1970s. The authors pay special attention to the social changes and government reforms engendered by the tragedies. Poorly reproduced black-and-white photos support the texts. Bib., ind. [Review covers these Great Disasters titles: Love Canal and Bhopal.]

Reviewer: Nell Beram