The Curious Guide to Things That Aren't

January 1, 2017

K-Gr 3-A playful take on alphabet and concept books, all packaged into one. Noteworthy entries include an itch, a kiss, a memory, the universe, and time. Black-and-white illustrations, punctuated with bright orange accents, provide the perfect backdrop to the miniexploration of the often intangible topics. Children will revel in trying to decipher the clues that precede each item. In fact, they will pick up the work again and again to test their guessing and memorization abilities. Once the subject is revealed, the well-thought-out definitions cover what one would find in the dictionary and then some, including, for example, the word's use in a figurative phrase. VERDICT Bound to keep young readers questioning the world around them and even giggling about it. No guessing needed-this one is a keeper from A to Z!-Colleen S. Banick, Westport Public Schools, CT

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2017
In alphabetical order, the authors present twenty-six intangible nouns such as time, reflection, and love. A double-page spread offers both verbal and visual clues to each; the following spread features a black, white, and fluorescent-pink cartoon drawing on the left and an informative description of the term on the right. Both a guessing game and a compendium of interesting information.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)