SERIES MADE SIMPLE

Behind the Lines

by Tim COOKE
9781781212349. ea vol: 48p. (World War II: The Full Story). chron. further reading. glossary. index. photos. websites. Black Rabbit/Brown Bear Bks. 2015. lib. ed. $37.10.
COPY ISBN
Gr 7–10—Although titled "The Full Story," this set is better described as an undistinguished general introduction. Volumes cover the causes; home fronts; military campaigns; air, land and sea wars; and lasting effects of the war, but at 48 pages per book, they provide almost no in-depth coverage of topics or analysis of events. There are no maps to help readers locate the many places mentioned in the text, which uses military jargon and descriptions of tactics without adequate introduction. Very brief sidebars add a few sentences about "key" people, events, themes, and eyewitness accounts. Period photos are generic and below average in quality and reproduction.
VERDICT These selections introduce so many topics, people, battles, and events that students are as likely to become confused as informed, and they don't improve on the many extant titles available about World War II.
This series provides middle schoolers with a general overview of WWII, discussing conflicts between Allied and Axis forces in both the western and eastern theaters; Home and Life focus on hardships civilians from both sides faced. Numerous photographs, sidebars, and blocks of text on every spread add up to a lot of information but a cluttered format. Reading list, timeline, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these World War II: The Full Story titles: Behind the Lines, Causes and Outbreaks, Home Fronts, Life in the War, North African and Europe, and War in the Pacific.
Reviewed by Mary Mueller , Nov 01, 2015

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