(4) 4-6 Searchlight Books: How Does Government Work? series. These books provide accessible overviews of the U.S. government. Documents looks at the creation of three essential documents from the late 1700s. The other volumes discuss running for elected office and the three branches of government. Lots of archival illustrations and/or photographs break up the concise, choppily written texts. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Searchlight Books: How Does Government Work? titles: Checks and Balances, Judges and Courts, The President, Vice President, and Cabinet, The Congress, Getting Elected, and Documents of Freedom.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(2) 4-6 Mixing fictional monologues, dialogues, letters, and poems with real photographs and factual essays, this well-designed and clearly organized volume conjures up the soul of Ellis Island throughout its history. Together these imagined voices and real images paint an emotional and informative picture of Ellis Island's impact, on both a grand and an individual scale. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2012

(4) K-3 Tales of Young Americans series. Illustrated by David Geister. In Riding, Janie goes with her father on a bus to hear Martin Luther King Jr. In Lucky, Ruth's school is closed during the Great Depression. Both stories purport to show a child's interpretation of a time in history, though their voices waver unconvincingly between naive and profound. The realistic-looking paintings, though stiff, make good use of light and shadow. Review covers these Tales of Young Americans titles: Riding to Washington and The Lucky Star.

Reviewer: Becky Levine

(4) K-3 On My Own Biography series. Illustrated by Matthew Archambault. These brief easy-to-read biographies introduce independent readers to three historical figures. The dry overviews cover each subject's childhood and adult accomplishments, discussing how each came to be a leader. The short lines of text and competent color illustrations on every page are appropriate for the reading level. Timeline. Review covers these On My Own Biography titles: Leif Eriksson, Sojourner Truth, and Cesar Chavez.

Reviewer: Elizabeth Shaver

(4) 4-6 History Maker Bios series. Illustrated with archival photos and art (as well as unfortunately cartoonish illustrations), each of these books presents a brief overview of the life of a famous American leader. Sidebars with tidbits of additional information extend the choppy text. Reading list, timeline, websites. Bib., ind. Review covers these History Maker Bios titles: Dwight D. Eisenhower, Andrew Jackson, John Hancock, John F. Kennedy, Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Ronald Himler & Ronald Himler. From the known facts about the titular song (music included)--John Jacob Niles learned it in 1933 from a girl, Annie Morgan--this book extrapolates a tale about a Depression-era preacher and his daughter taking to the road after Mama's death. The Appalachian-inflected hard-times narrative verges on maudlin, but the hardscrabble watercolor and pencil illustrations generate warmth while avoiding prettiness.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Lisa Harvey. Born in London in 1644, William Penn rebelled against his naval-officer father by joining the Society of Friends. Living through the Protectorate, plague, and Great Fire, he emigrated to establish the colony of Pennsylvania on land granted by King Charles II. Swain recounts Penn's life in accurate details that sometimes overwhelm the trajectory of the narrative. Black-and-white drawings accompany the text. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Called Chig because she's "'bout the size of a chigger bite," the petite protagonist starts school at age eight, suggests a way to help her disadvantaged community when a derailed train spills cans of food, and is responsible for bringing a post office to her tiny southern Indiana town. Set during the Depression era, the episodic story is a bit heavy with Southern-fried atmosphere, but Chig is a kind-hearted and appealing character.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(3) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Ralph L. Ramstad. Written in narrative form, this biography traces the life of Levi Coffin, a Quaker who helped establish the Underground Railroad. Beginning with his youth and ending with his death, the biography smoothly conveys how Coffin's work grew out of his youthful moral vision and Quaker background. Black-and-white line drawings accompany each chapter. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Jim St. Claire

(3) K-3 On My Own Biography series. Illustrated by Janice Lee Porter. Packed with information and illustrated with bold, folk-flavored artwork, this easy-to-read book explores the life of John Chapman from his childhood to his life as a frontiersman. The concise text both acknowledges that scant facts of Chapman's life are available and clearheadedly challenges some well-known legends about this popular folk hero. Bib.

Reviewer: Emma Loy-Santelli

(4) 4-6 Creative Minds Biography series. Illustrated by Ellen Beier. This is a smoothly written, if not especially riveting, biography. Born during the Civil War to former slaves, Mary Church broke barriers by going to college, traveling widely, and focusing on a career in teaching. She married Robert Terrell, the first African American to be appointed a federal judge, and devoted her later life to fighting for civil rights and against Jim Crow laws. Black-and-white drawings accompany her story. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) PS Small World series. Striking color photographs of people from around the world illustrate each theme and generate a sense of connectedness across cultures. An appendix gives more concrete information about where the pictures were taken and what they depict than is found in the unnecessarily rhyming text, which contains such lines as "A mother with babies has much to hold. / But she'll have help from her children when she grows old."

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann

(4) PS Small World series. Striking color photographs of people from around the world illustrate each theme and generate a sense of connectedness across cultures. An appendix gives more concrete information about where the pictures were taken and what they depict than is found in the unnecessarily rhyming text, which contains such lines as "A mother with babies has much to hold. / But she'll have help from her children when she grows old."

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann

(4) PS Small World series. Striking color photographs of people from around the world illustrate each theme and generate a sense of connectedness across cultures. An appendix gives more concrete information about where the pictures were taken and what they depict than is found in the unnecessarily rhyming text, which contains such lines as "A mother with babies has much to hold. / But she'll have help from her children when she grows old."

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann

(4) PS Small World series. Striking color photographs of people from around the world illustrate each theme and generate a sense of connectedness across cultures. An appendix gives more concrete information about where the pictures were taken and what they depict than is found in the unnecessarily rhyming text, which contains such lines as "A mother with babies has much to hold. / But she'll have help from her children when she grows old."

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann