(4) 4-6 Illustrated by David Cousens. This collection of short biographies highlights ten ancient-culture and European rulers, from Hatshepsut and Alexander the Great to Louis XIV and Catherine the Great. Comic-style illustrations spice up the otherwise dry (if informative) text, but they make the pages, which also include maps and boxed captions, look very cluttered. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: David Elzey

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by David Cousens. This volume emphasizes two elements of invention: humankind's drive to create in order to make life easier or more pleasurable and inventors' tendency to stand on the shoulders of preceding innovators to expand ideas. This chronological overview of ten inventors, famous and obscure, may inspire readers, but it lacks sources for further study. Comic-style illustrations are eye-catching but crowd the pages. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Tamara DePasquale