(3) K-3 Illustrated by Natalie Nelson. Wishinsky's straightforward, text-heavy picture-book biography places particular emphasis on Roebling's critical role in bringing her husband's engineering feat, the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, to completion after he fell ill. Taking inspiration from nineteenth-century newspapers, Nelson's collage illustrations draw from photographs, giving the book an air of historical authenticity. Speech bubbles with imagined dialogue make Roebling and her milieu accessible to today's readers. Reading list. Bib.

Reviewer: Erica Wetter

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Willow Dawson. Aboard the Lusitania, twelve-year-old Avis Dolphin befriends Professor Holbourn, who tells her a dramatic serial story of shipwreck, courage, and a girl-hero. When the Lusitania is torpedoed, Avis (a real-life Lusitania survivor) herself bravely lives out shipwreck and rescue. Avis's mildly eventful shipboard life is counterbalanced by Holbourn's ferocious adventure story, presented in wordless graphic-novel panels interspersed throughout the main text.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2015

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Qin Leng. While the title exaggerates a bit and the focus is more on North America and Europe than other regions, this is still a useful compendium of historical information, with glimpses of the arts and sciences. The full-color vignettes add visual interest, and "Ripples" text boxes feature connections to other events and to today's world. There are no sources. Timeline. Ind.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton. Sisters Carly and Sandy love playing pretend. New neighbor Lily Jean loves acting out roles, too, always as the boss. When Carly gets tired of her lesser parts, she turns the game on its head in a creative and humorous way. Big-sis Sandy's selflessness, while a little bit idealized, is also rewarding. Denton's pencil and watercolor illustrations represent the girls' imaginings well.

Reviewer: Brittany Schlorff

(4) YA Orca Currents series. Eve has gained weight just before starting high school. Her good friend has abandoned her, and she's subject to teasing. A series of fad diets make her even more miserable, but gradually she finds new friends and mentors a younger girl whose problems put her own in perspective. Readers will relate to Eve's story despite a too-obvious plot and a superficial ending.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Marie-Louise Gay. Jake tries to escape his adoring and annoying little sister, who's on him like glue. Finally, he closes his eyes and wishes she was a dog, who "wouldn't dance into his room...pound on his door...talk all day...talk at all"; lo and behold, a dog appears. Gay's detailed illustrations steal the show, humorously portraying the sibling love-hate relationship.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Neal Layton. When Jennifer Jones says she loves him, the narrator wishes she'd move far away so his schoolmates will stop teasing him. One day she does move, and the boy finds he misses her more than he expected. He's overjoyed when she writes and says she'll be back. The lively rhyme and energetic childlike drawings make this an entertaining read-aloud.

Reviewer: Patricia Riley

(4) PS Illustrated by Neal Layton. Best friends Lucy and Lenny call themselves the Fearless Two. "Nothing and no one scares us," they sing--that is, until a TV show gives Lucy nightmares. She worries that Lenny will laugh at her, but when his own fear of spiders comes to light, it's easier for Lucy to speak up. This predictable look at fear and friendship is accompanied by brightly colored, manic illustrations.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Song Nan Zhang. This brief look at the life of the renowned nineteenth-century landscape architect provides background information on Olmsted's early years before focusing on the time he spent working on and designing Central Park. Though sometimes awkwardly printed over the realistic, detailed paintings, the text clearly evokes the time and place in which Olmsted lived.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(3) PS Illustrated by Carol Thompson. Daniel is the only one in his family who is able to comfort his baby sister--a trick he works with nonsense words. Thompson's illustrations are cheerful and humorous and the story is a universal one, but libraries with the original edition, illustrated by Suçie Stevenson, need not replace it.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 1990

(3) K-3 Illustrated by H. Werner Zimmermann. Harry loves his job as a cake decorator; for him, each cake is a unique production. When he's laid off from the bakery by owners who "want fast, not different," Harry feels completely adrift. Fortunately, his young friend Ben helps him find a new calling: making clay sculptures. The illustrations gleefully depict the mess and spontaneity of Harry's first encounter with clay.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert