This story begins gently enough: young, white Carolina watches her mother put on diamond earrings prior to an evening out. Believable child-like questions ensue such as, did they cost a lot, where were they bought and can they be found if she digs in the garden? By the time Carolina discovers they come from Africa,…
Every teacher has answered questions which have come out of nowhere from children in their classes! “Why do grown-ups like tea and coffee so much?” or “Why are plane toilets so loud?” This tactile, hard back book encourages children to ask their questions without feeling silly. It is a humorous look at some questions we…
An impressive book that charts the history of the train. We enter the age of the railway and meet Richard Trevithick, William Hedley’s Puffing Billy, and Stephenson’s Rocket. Then we move round the world to The Festiniog Railway, electric and diesel locomotives, passenger and express trains including The Flying Scotsman. I enjoyed the glamour of…
An excellent book in the Learning Skills series which teaches the skills that are needed to be a scientist. It is a revised edition of the 2021 book Think Like A Scientist that has been updated to include AI. It is wide-ranging with chapters on Science is Everywhere, What Do Scientists Actually Do?, How Did…
Another useful addition to the Learning Skills series which helps children to navigate the information jungle. It is a revised edition of the 2020 book Question Everything that has been updated to include AI. The reader is guided through the range of information we meet everyday from social media to buses. We are given suggestions…
It is impossible not to be impressed by the children whose lives are celebrated in this book. As the Introduction say “there are dreamers and fighters, thinkers and makers, achievers and believers. ….from around the world and across history.” Some are well-known like Greta Thunberg Blaise Pascal, Stevie Wonder and Wolgang Amadeus Mozart. Others are…
Twelve year old Quinn and her ten year old brother Olly have always known they were sperm donor-conceived to each of their mums, making them half-siblings. As they set off on their annual coastal holiday, their mums tell them of a website where they can find out more about the donor and that apparently they…
This, for me, is quite a unique take on a non-fiction animal book. It focuses mainly on the scientific approach to discovering information about animals that conservationists and scientists use: from tracking their journeys; to looking at their behaviour; to studying their bodies, all with the aim of making this world a better place for…
Ellie Bean (or Jellybean as she is known to her friends and family) has what seems to be an insurmountable problem: she just can’t face going to school. The trouble is that Ellie finds it impossible to articulate why. The sight of her school uniform makes her feel sick. When she thinks about school, a…