The Moon
7+ readers 9+ readers 11+ readersSeptember 2018 Non-Fiction Book of the Month | This sumptuous book, packed with gorgeous full and double-page illustrations by Thomas Hegbrook, will appeal to a very broad audience. Its subject – of course – is the Moon, our nearest and most familiar neighbour in space, and a source of fascination to mankind for thousands of years. Chapters cover both what we know of the moon, and what we’ve imagined; there are detailed and fascinating explanations of the moon’s physical relationship to Earth, and lots too on the Apollo missions and space exploration. Also included are different cultures’ moon myths, and examples of the beautiful poetry it has inspired. And there are quirky, unexpected facts – it seems the moon really can affect our behaviour for example. A book to intrigue and inform.
Holes Discover a Hidden World
9+ readers 11+ readersJuly 2018 Book of the Month | This clearly written visually stunning book will have children jumping in to learn all about a wide variety of topics – history, nature, science, medicine, even philosophy: who’d have thought that holes could contain so much? They are a passion of the author and his enthusiasm spills onto the pages. Whether he’s looking at natural holes, manmade holes, holes in humans (mouth, nose, eyes, bottom), or the ways holes have been described in maths and philosophy, the information presented is fascinating and often dramatic. The painterly illustrations match the text for depth, and are often quite beautiful to look at. Like the best non-fiction, this is full of answers but will leave readers ready to ask more questions.
Humanatomy
7+ readers 9+ readers 11+ readersThe human body is amazing, ‘the most incredible machine on Earth’ says this book, which explains exactly how it works, from the inside out. Over colourful, clearly designed pages, featuring detailed illustrations, it peels back the layers of the human body to examine the individual body systems, from the integumentary system (skin, hair and nails), through the muscular system, skeletal system, digestive system, right up to and including DNA, in a chapter What makes me who I am? Questions are asked throughout in fact, making it highly interactive and engaging, and some of them provoke the response, ‘Yuk’ (Is it true you can drink your own urine). With a neat reference guide to the body tucked inside the front cover, and useful glossary at the back, this book is well thought out and informative from beginning to end.
Journeys
7+ readers 9+ readers 11+ readersThis fine, beautifully illustrated book does everything an information book should. Its subject is the amazing expeditions taken by men and women over the centuries. Some subjects will be familiar – Shackleton, Marco Polo, Amelia Earhart – while others will be less well known, such as Ibn Battuta who travelled though Africa, Central Asia, Afghanistan and India in the 1300s. Travelling, he’s quoted as saying, ‘turns you into a storyteller’, and the stories told in this book are proof that truth is at least as gripping as fiction. Young readers will be left not just informed but inspired to find out more, and with a bigger view of the world. ~ Andrea Reece 360 Degrees is a non-fiction imprint of the Little Tiger Group. Each book is unique in subject and presentation style. 360 Degrees’ main objective is to create accessible and unique non-fiction books, ensuring the highest production values and attention to creative detail.
In Focus Cities
5+ readers 7+ readersTen different illustrators explore the culture and customs of some of the world’s greatest cities in this stylish information book. Each city is portrayed across double pages, which in turn open out, enabling the reader to discover a wealth of detail about the different cities. As well as facts and figures, often awe-inspiring, there’s quirkier information, all illustrated: for example there’s a panel on Tokyo’s vending machines, some of which dispense very unusual things, as well as on the Sens?-ji Temple; the pages on Rome tell us about the city’s artichoke festival as well as about the Vatican and the Colosseum. Each illustrator has a distinctive style well-suited to the city they portray and the book gives a real sense of the bustling character of each featured city. ~ Andrea Reece
Above and Below
3+ readers 5+ readersChildren are invited to explore eight different habitats in this appealing and very attractive information book, clever split page design allows them to examine the creatures that live there both above and below ground or sea and it also deftly illustrates the way animals share their habitats with each other. There are spreads on the ocean, rainforest, savannah and river amongst others, one colourful page depicting a lively scene packed with fauna and flora while on the opposite page short paragraphs of text accompany details from the scenes giving readers with useful and sometimes quirky information. This look-and-find format is also very effective and Hanako Clulow’s illustrations are full of child appeal. ~ Andrea Reece
Wilderness An Interactive Atlas of Animals
5+ readers 7+ readers 9+ readersThe wonderful world of animals is explored across seven different habitats in this eye-catching book. Each page is beautifully illustrated in full colour and features a range of animals, birds, plants and insects, familiar ones and the less well known, alongside panels of short but informative text. Readers are often challenged directly, ‘Did you know …’ and with flaps to lift, wheels to turn – one cleverly demonstrates the lifecycle of a butterfly, another that of the frog – and even a pop up mountain, this will hold and keep young readers’ attention. ~ Andrea Reece
In Focus 101 Close Ups, Cross-Sections and Cutaways
5+ readers 7+ readersThe renaissance in non-fiction and information books continues apace as publishers create beautiful books that inform and inspire readers. This is just such a book: ten accomplished artists each explore a chosen topic over a double page spread – though as each page also features a giant flap, they actually have space to work across six pages. Beneath the flaps readers can see what is happening within, so Thomas Pullin takes us inside some of the world’s different houses, from Musgum mud hut, to cave house and Japanese dentoutekina; Barbara Bakos takes readers inside the space shuttle; and Chester Bentley dissects a volcano. There’s a huge amount of information beautifully presented. This is a book for young readers to pore over, and one that really does provide a fresh perspective on our world. ~ Andrea Reece
Hello World
5+ readers 7+ readersAs much an atlas as a language learning book Hello World is a clever way to stimulate children’s interest in the world and the many different peoples who share it and if they read it from start to finish, children will be able to say hello to people in every country in the world! Stylish and clearly designed pages illustrate the continents and outline the different countries highlighting not cities or landscape features but the people who live there and their word for hello. Under neat little flaps are pronunciation guides and facts about the language. There are some mind-boggling pieces of information, for example there are over 1,300 different languages in Australia and the isles of the Pacific, almost a fifth of the world’s total among a tiny population. An unusual and very rewarding information book. Click here to download a brilliant free teaching resource linked to this book.
Storyworlds: Nature
5+ readersOpening with an exhortation to readers to ‘discover, inquire and wonder’, this is another example of the exciting trend in non-fiction for beautifully illustrated, handsomely produced information books for children. Striking wordless scenes of wildlife and plants challenge children to work out the stories being told: some are stories of defence against attack – an armadillo curling into a ball, a squid squirting out ink; others are stories of courtship – a male Gentoo penguin dropping pebbles at his mate’s feet; while other beautiful pages illustrate the life cycles of a butterfly and ladybird. Illustrations sometimes fill whole pages, elsewhere spreads are divided into eye-catching strips. Endnotes on each image provide readers with additional information. A book that brilliantly demonstrates the rich variety of life on earth as well as its interconnection. ~ Andrea Reece A Letter from the Publisher: Dear Reader, How does one put together a large format picture book with one hundred separate illustrations? I could detail the meticulous planning; the writing and re-writing of text that will never be read; the hours of researching and verifying the facts; the careful planning of colour balance and atmosphere; the sleepless nights putting paint to paper and the in-depth discussions of paper stocks, cover finishes and format variations. Or I could just tell you why... The premise is simple. Events from nature ~ or stories as we are calling them. A book that opens our eyes to the natural world around us and forces us to observe it and ask questions. A book that encourages the use of imagination without spelling everything out to the reader and enables parents to converse with their children about nature, with a simple ‘what do you think is happening here?’ It’s about heart. We’ve created a book that is close to our hearts. It is the kind of book I hope my son will enjoy. I want him to be aware of the world outside his window, to ask questions about it, to engage with it, and to feel. I hope you do too. Thomas Truong Publisher, 360 Degrees
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