Peter Kent's City Across Time

Gr 4-8 This intriguing introduction to urban archaeology features cross-sections of the same location in an imaginary European city from the Stone Age to the 21st century. Changes in daily life aboveground are fascinating, and what happens in the subterranean realm is equally engaging. As one civilization displaces another, skeletons, artifacts, and garbage form layer upon layer of an unwritten record. Kent supplies brief overviews of each era depicted for quick snapshots of history. In addition to glimpses of the same street in different centuries, spreads offer detailed depictions of a medieval silver mine, construction of the London Underground, and secret bunkers built during the Cold War. These interludes remind readers that past construction is evident beneath our feet and provide the materials studied by archaeologists. Whether students flip through the pages quickly or painstakingly compare certain elements in the underground layers from one color cartoon illustration to the next, they will gain a deeper appreciation for the way human settlements change over time. Anne Millard's "A Street Through Time" (DK, 1998) takes readers on another journey through urban history, although that volume lacks the underground and archaeological components of Kent's work."Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato" Copyright 2010 Media Source Inc.