WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

A must-add resource to any middle school classroom library.

—Children's Literature

engaging and thought-provoking

—Canadian Childrens Book News Starred review

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

...important and highly meaningful

—CM Magazine

...thoughtful and encouraging.

—Canadian Childrens Book News

...will inspire readers.

—School Library Journal

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

An engaging tour of the inspirations behind a host of marvelous inventions.

—Kirkus

A worthy addition to the pantheon of books on inventors and inventions.

—School Library Journal

A fantastic mini-encyclopaedia…Get your thinking caps on, be inspired and you may accidentally stumble onto something when you were thinking of creating something else!” This is How to Become an Accidental Genius.

—Resource Links

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

MacLeod and Wishinsky employ a straightforward, engaging tone infused with humour in various forms, including clever wordplay and witty dialogue presented in speech bubbles.

—Quill and Quire

This book will be a captivating starting point for a study of Canadian history leading up to the 150th birthday celebration. Its engaging depiction of landmarks, famous inventors, historical figures, and wildlife also allows for countless additional curriculum connections.

—National Reading Campaign

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

They have taken the difficult task of distilling the most pertinent facts about the event, person or discovery and explain them in kid-friendly language that readers will comprehend easily.

—CM Magazine

Compact and surprisingly complete, this volume is a superb introduction.

—School Library Journal

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

This book sure makes it fun to learn about explorers for young middle-graders, especially to open up their minds about men who risked much and left a contribution to our world.

—Library of Clean Reads

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

This delicious compendium of little-known food facts explains what 19th-century cowboys ate (mostly beef, beans and potatoes); how much cereal kids eat (an average of 15 pounds a year); why people in Scotland always store unsliced bread with the rounded side up) ...One thing is for sure: you’ll learn some stuff about food that you never knew before.

—Infodad

Wishinsky and MacLeod create 10 fast paced, amusing chapters with titles such as: ‘Why Don’t Vampires Like Garlic’ (traditions and superstitions), ‘Would You Eat Tarantula?’ (munching around the world), and ‘Who Invented That?’ (incredible food inventions). Each chapter is not only chock full of facts and fascinating tidbits but also answers questions such as ‘Do watermelons remove freckles?’ and ‘Can you really clean a toilet with a can of cola?’ Each chapter ends with a suggestion for an activity ranging from party ideas to crossword puzzles. Although the text as presented can stand alone as well done, illustrator Travis King must be commended for adding humor and energy that will attract readers and keep their interest. His illustrations are graphic, colorful and with a quirkiness that sets the tone of learning through sheer enjoyment.

—CM Magazine

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

Gr 6-10-Budding interior designers and readers who want to personalize their rooms will appreciate this title. It is filled with step-by-step guidelines for creating a budget, selecting paint colors and fabrics, organizing closets and desks, laying everything out, and adding finishing touches. A great find for novices in the throes of makeovers.

—School Library Journal

An impressively ‘kid friendly’ collection of basic ‘how to’ information on how children can designing a desirable and attractive room for themselves. Comprehensively guiding readers through the entire process from clearing a room to placing light fixtures, It’s Your Room offers a simply brilliant introduction to interior design principles for kids from elementary school through high school. An ideal and popular addition to family, school, and community library collections, It’s Your Room is very highly recommended for all young people aspiring to redecorate their room to accord with their own (and changing) tastes and preferences.

—Childrens Bookwatch

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

An engaging biography...

—Jewish Book World

Listen to a review of ALBERT EINSTEIN on Net Radio’s All About Books.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

This is a truly astonishing life story.

—Booklist

Approachable and enjoyable...a picture of one of the world’s great scientists in an inspiring story

—BC Parent

WHAT THE CRITICs SAY...

Getting inside the ‘mind’ of a man so well respected for his ingeniousness is no simple task. Yet, Wishinsky does a very good job of capturing, as she describes it, the ‘personality and spirit in mind’ that makes Einstein such a fascinating character. There is little doubt that creating a believable interview between Billy and Einstein would be challenging, but Wishinsky meets the challenge in an excellent fashion. The dialogue is believable both in style and in content. Einstein comes across as a quirky individual who, despite being poorly understood, was able to cultivate and share his own views about the world. WHAT’S THE MATTER WITH ALBERT? would be valuable to any child interested in knowing more about Einstein ‘the genius’ and Einstein ‘the person.’ Easy to read and easy to digest, this book is recommended for all collections.

—CM magazine

Gr. 2-4 Though the story-within-a-story sounds cumbersome, it works very well. In a note, Wishinsky points out what part of the text is Einstein’s own words, the parts that are based on biographical facts, and the fictionalization. The presentation ends with a two-page chronology. Large, colorful paintings dramatize the story and clearly convey the different periods and settings. An unusual, but worthwhile, introduction to Einstein’s life.

—Booklist

Appealling, imaginatively conceived ... the book works on a number of levels.

—Quill and Quire

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY...

The straightforward text is informative, and the many colorful pencil illustrations add greatly to the book’s appeal... [This] illustrated biography makes its statement with style.

—Booklist

The text brings Olmsted to life...”

—School Library Journal

It’s a rich tale of a man finding his true calling and a nation finding a visionary...

—San Francisco Chronicle