The Ancient Greeks

Gr 3–5—These two additions to the series examine the rise and fall of two of history's most studied civilizations while also highlighting their most distinct features. Covering everything from founding and eventual fall to important figures and notable pieces of art, each book is a crash course in a different part of the ancient world. Each title ends with a few pages on archaeology and how contemporary historians are discovering ancient artifacts and structures and studying and preserving the relics of the past. There's nothing groundbreaking here, but these titles are likely to be crowd-pleasers that will pique the interest of reluctant readers. However, some names (especially those of important leaders or those referring to different religions) and locations will bog readers down. Loose, playful illustrations with a down-to-earth charm make the work more approachable than history books that rely on photos and in-depth descriptions. A foldout time line and map cover the broad range of the civilizations' histories at a glance, although the chronology is cluttered and a little difficult to follow.