Pirates

Gr 4–8—Each of the 100 "facts" in these books is actually the topic sentence of a paragraph about a person or subject, rather than stand-alone pieces of information. The titles are organized nicely into chronological chapters, with several paragraphs on each spread. Most of the topics are about Western civilization, but Weapons, Mummies, and Pyramids include information from around the globe. The volumes are attractive with full but not crowded pages, and there is an illustration for almost every subject, with many cutaways that will help students understand processes, people, and change over time. Weaknesses include a lack of maps, the substitution of drawings for photos of artifacts and locations, and an occasional undefined term. Short "I Don't Believe It" boxes include bits of trivia, while sidebars containing puzzles, craft instructions, and quizzes supplement the texts. The attractive format will capture and hold reader attention.