(3) 4-6 Explorers series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. Appealing color illustrations and informative diagrams complement this historical overview of the U.S. space program. There's an emphasis on the seventeen Apollo missions, in particular the Apollo 11 moon landing. The book also clearly explains the technology of spacecraft, describes the astronauts' daily routine in space, and summarizes "what happened next" in U.S. space flight. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(4) 4-6 Time Traveler's Guide series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. This illustrated series provides you-are-there glimpses at life in a (fictional) town of each ancient civilization. Two-page sections each focus on a specific part or structure. The information is generalized, but the series' draw is the detailed illustrations, which use bird's-eye perspectives and cutaways to allow readers to see inside various buildings. Appended "Time-Traveler's Guide" notes provide basic information about culture. Glos., ind. Review covers these Time Traveler's Guide titles: Inca Town, Greek Town, Roman Town, and Egyptian Town.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(4) 4-6 Time Traveler's Guide series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. This illustrated series provides you-are-there glimpses at life in a (fictional) town of each ancient civilization. Two-page sections each focus on a specific part or structure. The information is generalized, but the series' draw is the detailed illustrations, which use bird's-eye perspectives and cutaways to allow readers to see inside various buildings. Appended "Time-Traveler's Guide" notes provide basic information about culture. Glos., ind. Review covers these Time Traveler's Guide titles: Inca Town, Greek Town, Roman Town, and Egyptian Town.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(4) 4-6 Do You Want to Be a... series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. Each volume focuses on how a specific class of people lived in their civilization. Two-page sections regarding one aspect of life contain a brief main text surrounded by illustrations and explanatory captions. While layouts are busy, short blurbs make the volumes browsable. "Interview" questions determine if readers "have what it takes" for each role. There are four other spring 2015 books in this series. Glos., ind. Review covers the following Do You Want to Be a... titles: Do You Want to Be a Medieval Knight?, Do You Want to Be a Samurai Warrior?, Do You Want to Be an Ancient Egyptian Princess?, and Do You Want to Be an Ancient Greek Athlete?.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(4) 4-6 Closer Look At series. Illustrated by Carolyn Scrace & Mark Bergin. While there's not much depth, these overviews feature plants and animals that comprise ecosystems within biomes: from canopy to rivers in Rain Forest, from seashore to ocean floor in Seas. Each cleanly designed double-page spread includes a brief paragraph, two text boxes, illustrations that portray the density of life in each area, and photographs of selected animals. Human impact is also considered. Glos., ind. Review covers these A Closer Look At titles: Rain Forest and Seas & Oceans.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(4) K-3 Flip the Flaps series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. Lift-the-flap vertical half pages encourage readers to uncover the answers to basic (if random) questions about various types of vehicles. The somewhat scattered and content-lite text (e.g., Q: "What makes a car go?" A: "An engine gives it the power to turn the wheels") detracts from the visual appeal of the carefully detailed transportation illustrations.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Mark Bergin. This book features maps that chart worldwide exploration from 1450–1800. Each double-page spread includes a map, a paragraph of supportive text, many small illustrations and some photographs with captions that give more information, and a running timeline. The busy pages can be confusing to follow and have some typos (e.g., "Spai" for Spain). Ind.

Reviewer: Barbara Barstow

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Mark Bergin. This book focuses on Darwin's experience and enthusiasm as the scientific expert on the Beagle, the ship itself and life aboard her, the principal ports of the five-year voyage, and Darwin's later cataloguing and synthesis of his observations into the theory of evolution. Captioned art illustrates the chronological text, with smaller details and maps to the side. Timeline. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) 4-6 Battle Zones series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. Crowded double-page spreads include paragraphs of information, labeled illustrations, photos, reproductions, and captions. The books give details about how wars were fought and profile major figures, but readers will have a hard time connecting the war tactics with wider ramifications. Timeline. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Battle Zones titles: Warfare in the Ancient World and Warfare in the Middle Ages.]

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Dave Antram & Mark Bergin. These two series books provide introductions to major Egyptian and Greek deities. The pages are crowded with text (some of which is printed in tiny type), text boxes, illustrations, and photographs of artifacts, all of which contribute to information about the particular god or goddess and about life for mere mortals. Report writers who persevere will glean basic facts about the subjects. Glos., ind. [Review covers these titles: Gods and Goddesses: In the Daily Life of the Ancient Egyptians and Gods and Goddesses: In the Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks.]

Reviewer: Jaynia B. Fink

(4) 4-6 Expedition series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. The history of the space race and the mission to the moon is presented in a layout that features a brief text and color artwork framed by illustrated information boxes. Some of this supplemental material unnecessarily repeats facts from the main text. The detailed illustrations are appealing, but the overall volume is cramped. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(4) 4-6 Metropolis series. Illustrated by Mark Bergin. Published spring 1998. The towns, loosely based on actual ancient cities in West Africa and the Andes mountains, are explored on double-page spreads. Topics such as family life, religion, and farming are discussed in text blocks unfortunately cluttered with supplemental illustrations. The accompanying full-page color artwork is often presented from a bird's-eye-view vantage with occasional cutaway detail. Additional facts about the towns are included at the back of the volumes. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta