Spell it Out

Spell It Out: The Curious, Enthralling and Extraordinary Story of English Spelling David Crystal

Much like he does in The Story of English in 100 Words, Crystal has made language history exceedingly accessible. This is a basic history of English spelling and how it developed over time, and why it’s so darn wacky. (Short story-- trying to use the latin alphabet for a non-Latin language, scribes changing spelling to make things easier/prettier on the page, French influence after the Norman conquest, and the Great Vowel shift.)

But, for a book that could easily be boring, short chapters and a conversational style make this one an easy read. I also love love love love that Crystal doesn’t decry texting and the internet as ruining spelling. He also makes wonderful arguments as to why spelling is more important than ever. There's also an entire section for early education teachers with his ideas about how to teach spelling to make it more relevant, easier, and fun.

Very fun, and an Outstanding Book for the College Bound that I think teens will really enjoy.

Book Provided by... my local library

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Nonfiction Monday: Hacking Your Education

Hacking Your Education: Ditch the Lectures, Save Tens of Thousands, and Learn More Than Your Peers Ever Will Dale J. Stephens

Stephens (founder of UnCollege) lays out his manifesto on why college isn’t the best option for most people and instead offers a new template on how to learn, grow, and find gainful employment.

Stephens was an unschooler and carries that mentality into higher education.

It’s a compelling case-- basically college is crazy expensive and the higher earnings degree holders used to see are shrinking. When you look at how much money you had to put into college in the first place-- it’s not necessarily at great ROI.

In the words of Good Will Hunting (and this quotation opens the book) “You wasted $150000 on an education for $1.50 in late fees at the library?”

Now, personally, I would have been a horrible uncollege student. I didn’t have the personal drive necessary to be successful at it.

But one thing I love about this book is it’s not just for college-- Stephen’s plan for life-long learning is great for learning at any point in your life--high school, college, post-college. He has a lot of really useful exercises to get you started and great ideas to get up and go.

It’s an quick and easy read and a very interesting look at education and how we can, and need to, make it work for us.

Today's Nonfiction Monday is over at Shelf-Employed.

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Little White Duck

Little White Duck: A Childhood in China Na Liu, illustrated by Andres Vera Martinez

So, I may have been a little over-excited about this one. There aren't a lot of books about post-Mao, pre-Tiananmen China. Let alone for kids. Let alone in comic book form. Na Liu was a small child when Mao died and everything changed. In a series of short stories, she shows glimpses of her childhood, comparing it with how her parents grew up during the Great Leap Forward and Great Famine. In one memorable story, she accompanies her father to his country home and sees how privileged her life really is. This will be enlightening to American readers, as Na Liu's life isn't easy compared to modern American standards-- I don't know of any America schools where kids are assigned the duty of killing rats, and have to bring in the tails as proof.

That said, I wanted more. I wanted more context and more history for these stories. I don't think that will turn off of confuse the intended audience-- if nothing else more context might overwhelm the younger readers this is aimed at. There's enough her to understand what's happening, and I think it's great for children. But, as an adult reader, I did want something more than a few childhood vignettes--especially because this is a time period SO unexplored across all age-ranges, formats, and genres. It's a great book for kids, but it left me a little underwhelmed.

Today's Nonfiction Monday is over at Abby (the) Librarian.

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Relish

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley

This comic-book memoir focuses on Knisley's relationship with food, and how the turning points of her life were connected to food. Even better is that each chapter ends with a recipe related to the chapter-- and, because this is a full-color comic book, it's an illustrated recipe.

Knisley was raised by foodies-- her mother's a chef, her father a gourmand. Some of her biggest issues with them stem from her love of McDonald's. She's worked in farmer's markets and high end food stores. She's eaten fabulous meals around the world and straight from her garden.

She examines how her mother uses food to show love, her parents marriage and divorce through the lens of food, today's food culture in New York and Chicago, and her own relationship with food-- both as sustenance and as shared experience.

Knisley's work is honest and funny. I loved that the was some back matter of family photographs.

I can't wait to make some of these recipes. Before reading, I'd flip through to see what food she's going to make you crave, so you can have some on hand-- this is a book that will make you super hungry.

This is a book for older teens/adults and some of the recipes involve alcoholic beverages, although she offeres non-alcoholic substitutes. She also offers vegetarian and vegan substitutes in some recipes, to cover multiple diets.

Today's Nonfiction Monday round-up is over at: Practically Paradise.

Book Provided by... a coworker, who lent me her copy.

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London

As many of you know, last year I was lucky to serve on YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults. (Sometimes ENYA for short). ENYA is a fun award, because in December they announce their shortlist and then the winner is announced as part of the Youth Media Award announcements in January. In addition, they release a long-list of nominations. In the past, this list was every book the nominated. This year, the list became vetted-- so it's not every book we looked at or nominated, but rather, after discussion, every book we felt was excellent (just not as excellent as our winner and shortlisted titles.)

Personally, I really like this change. The best way to get the committee to discuss a book was to nominate it-- but what if, after discussion, you realize that a book is seriously flawed? Then it still goes on the list! (And there is an ALA seal that long-list titles can use.) I know I was hesitant to nominate a title because I was afraid of accidentally putting an unworthy title on the list. The freedom in knowing that it could get taken off the list if it didn't hold up to group scrutiny was useful cover!

Anyway, I've been covering the long list since the list was made public this winter. This is the final title from the list...

Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London Andrea Warren

This biography of Dickens ties his life story in with the plots of his books, showing how his real-life experiences inspired his work. It especially focuses on his work with England's poor and disenfranchised, showing how he used his wealth and fame to help and draw attention to the major social issues of the day.

I think this book stands apart for a few reasons. For one, it's one of the best that I've read in fully describing what life was like for the poor of Victorian London. It does an excellent job of explaining what life was like in debtor's prison and the workhouses and why these institutions were to be avoided at all costs. One of the other reasons is that it does an excellent job of showing what a major celebrity Dickens was in his time and why his work was so important. It hink it also makes a good case for why Dickens is, and should be, read today and studied in school.

It's also heavily illustrated, using artwork from the time period to help convey the life of Dickens and the poor. Surprisingly, many of the pictures are colored-- a nice touch.

Overall a great book that will appeal to the Dickens fan sure, but will also turn many other readers into fans of Dickens.

Be sure to check out today's Nonfiction Monday roundup, over at Instantly Interruptible.

Also, as a reminder, please check out my other project, YA Reading List, where I post a themed and topical reading list every.single.day.

Book Provided by... the publisher, for award consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Their Skeletons Speak

Their Skeletons Speak: Kennewick Man and the Paleoamerican World Sally M. Walker

We're almost done looking at the long list for YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults. Sally Walker had two books on the list this year-- big congratulations to her!

Like her Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland, Walker looks at the history and science and significance of several sets of remains. This time, she focuses on the oldest skeletons found in the Americas.

The book mostly focuses on 9,000 years-old Kennewick Man, how we was discovered on a riverbank in 1996 and how much we have discovered about where we came from.

I'm a huge fan of Bones and so I love of Walker shows us how the reconstruction and renderings work in real life. I find such things fascinating. I also like how Walker looks at a range of finds and how they all relate to each other in forming a unified theory of early human life in the Americas. I hope Walker continues to write books on using forensic science and history-- wonderful stuff.

Today's Nonfiction Monday round up is over at Stacking Books. Be sure to check it out!

Book Provided by... the publisher for awards consideration.

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Blizzard of Glass

Blizzard of Glass: The Halifax Explosion of 1917 Sally M. Walker

As regular readers may remember, last year I was on the committee for the Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults. In addition to our winners and finalists, the committee also publishes a list of vetted nominations (what I like to call the "long list.") I'm in the process of highlighting these titles during Nonfiction Monday.

In December 1917, war was raging in Europe. In Halifax Harbor, two ships were on their way to the action, one on it's way to pick up relief supplies, the other full of munitions. The two ships collided, causing a fire. As the munitions ship drifted, fire on its deck, it crashed into the pier and exploded, leveling most of of the harbor area and creating a shockwave that blew out almost every window in Halifax proper. 2000 people died, 9000 more were injured. Rescue and relief efforts were further dampened when a blizzard blew in the next day and dumped over a foot of snow on the area.

Until the advent of nuclear weapons, the Halifax explosion was the largest man-made explosion ever.

Walker tells this story (one that's very well known in Canada, but not so much in the US) through the eyes of children who lived around the harbor at the time. Children getting ready for school, running errands, and going about their day. She weaves these daily accounts in with the context of shipping lanes and traffic, and what was happening in the Harbor. Walker also covers the communities on the other side of the Harbor who were affected by the explosion, resulting shock wave, and tsunami. The book is also very good at detailing what happened after the explosion to everyone.

Fun fact: The Halifax coroner's office had a tested system in place to deal with a mass casualty event like this. It had been developed 2 years earlier, when they brought in the bodies from the Titanic.

Today's Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at a wrung sponge. Check it out.

Also check out today's YA Reading List post, in honor of Yom HaShoah.

Book Provided by... the publisher, for award consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Impossible Rescue

Before we get to the reviewing, just a reminder about my other project, YA Reading List, where I post a themed reading list EVERY SINGLE DAY.

The Impossible Rescue: The True Story of an Amazing Arctic Adventure Martin W. Sandler

I'm covering the books that were on the 2013 long-list for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction. For those who don't know, I was on this committee and I really want to highlight these other titles that we loved.

Off the coast of Alaska, the winter of 1897 came early, trapping eight whaling ships in the ice. There was a small settlement on shore, but between the ships and the settlement, there were not enough provisions to get through the winter, and no way to get more. (One ship managed to not be trapped, and was able to let people know what was going on, but there wasn't enough time to get back via ship for a rescue effort before winter hit full force.) President McKinley had a plan and sent three men to get them food-- they'd travel through the state and buy reindeer herds along the way, and herd the reindeer to where the men were stranded. Meanwhile, at the ships, morale and discipline were running just as low as the food.

Sandler does an excellent job of describing the conditions and tensions that run through this story. From a modern vantage point, the situation is hard to wrap your head around, but Sandler explains it really well and will have you on the edge of your seat, shivering through the Arctic reader with the whalers and their rescuers. There are several photographs and primary sources illustrating the text. It also gets high marks for some truly excellent maps and excellent back matter-- including a comprehensive "what happened next" for the people involved.

Today's Nonfiction Monday is over at Wendie's Wanderings. Be sure to check it out!

Book Provided by... the publisher, for award consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Invincible Microbe

Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Never-Ending Search for a Cure by Jim Murphy and Alison Blank.

I'm back taking a closer look at the long list of this year's YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults.

Murphy and Blank do a wonderful job of weaving in multiple strands of the TB story. There's the story of the disease itself, starting in prehistory and going until today, how it affects the body, how it kills, and how we've come to the drug-resistant types we have today. There's the story of those searching for a cure, the doctors with medicine, the quacks with schemes, what has worked, what hasn't, and where we are today. Then there's the story of TB's role in pop culture and policy-- the romantic idea of the consumptive waif, border closings to quarantine areas, the way it spread through centers of urban poor. Lastly, but most importantly, it's the story of those who have suffered from this disease, from prehistoric times until today.

They dip in and out of these stories seamlessly and tying it all together as they follow TB across time and space. It gets scary at the end, when they talk about TB's comback and how what little we had to combat it is no longer working.

It's fascinating and medical and social history at its best.

Amazingly, after I read this, I discovered that I actually know several people with TB. I was even able to explain the reasons behind some of the more annoying parts of their treatment!

Today's Nonfiction Monday is over at Supratentorial. Check it out!


Book Provided by... the publisher, for award consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Haunted Histories

Haunted Histories: Creepy Castles, Dark Dungeons, and Powerful Palaces by JH Everett, illustrated by Marilyn Scott-Waters.

I'm taking a break from the covering the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction longlist to bring you something else that I just read.

Virgil is a ghostorian-- a historian with a magic time-travel device that allows him to go to any place in any time and talk to ghosts to get a good sense of what really happened there.

He uses these powers to take us to many castles around the world to show how hard (and disgusting) life really was, especially for the many people who WEREN'T royalty, but still lived there.

In a lot of ways, this is very similar to the You Wouldn't Want to Be... series, but for a slightly older audience. The content isn't that older, but the trim size and presentation will make it appeal to readers who might dismiss the You Wouldn't Want to Be... books as looking too young.

It's a fun look at the dark and gritty side of castle life, focusing on why castles tended to exist in the first place-- fortresses to protect and defend during war time. It also spends a lot of time on dungeons and torture.

I'm not sure on the who "ghostorian" angle-- it wasn't played up a lot and so when it did happen, I was like "wait, what? OH YEAH! THAT!" I think they could have done A LOT more with that bit. Or cut it entirely.

I do really like that it covered castles outside of Europe. I also really liked the "funny" castles. Hellbrunn Water palace was a designed by the Prince Archbishop, and was a way for him to play a million water-based practical jokes on visitors.

It's not a book you'll quote in a research paper, but it is a fun book that may inspire you to pick up some more on the topic.

Today's Nonfiction Monday is over at Shelf-Employed.

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Temple Grandin

It's Nonfiction Monday! I'm still highlighting the books that made this year's YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults vetted nominations list.


Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World Sy Montgomery

Temple's father wanted to institutionalize her, but her mother stood up for her and tried to find her all the help she could. Growing up with autism is rarely, if ever, easy, but when Temple did it (born in 1947), it didn't even had a name yet. But Temple found a way to get what she needed and managed to turn her love of cows into a career that has completely changed the way we handle livestock, especially cows.

Montgomery's biography does a wonderful job at explaining how Temple's mind works, really giving readers a sense of what it's like to be in her head. She also does a great job of explaining Temple's work and why it's important.

It's a fascinating book, written in a very engaging style. I think Temple's story of how she changed life for cows and how cows behave would be interesting on its own, but with the story of how her brain works and the obstacles that has put in her path it adds an extra level.

Today's Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at Wrapped in Foil. Check it out!

Book Provided by... the publisher, for awards consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Amazing Harry Kellar

The Amazing Harry Kellar: Great American Magician by Gail Jarrow.

I'm covering all the books on the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults list of vetted nominations. Here' the next one!

Harry Kellar was amazingly famous in his time, one of the world's first superstars, but outside of magic circles, he's almost entirely unknown today.

The large, heavily illustrated format of this book may want you to put it with the picture books, and younger kids will enjoy it, but I think teens will love it. It's heavily illustrated with Kellar's advertising posters. Kellar was a master at PR, and the posters don't have the same effect if they're reproduced on a smaller size.

In addition to telling Kellar's life and career, Jarrow excels at explaining why magic and spiritualism were so popular at the turn of the 19th century. She also breaks the magician's code and tells us how many of his illusions and tricks worked.

It's a fun and fascinating book, with a really cool design that will appeal to a really wide range of readers. I think it will be avoided because of its size, but take a second look, and you won't be disappointed.

Today's Nonfiction Monday Roundup is over at Abby the Librarian. Check it out!


Book Provided by... the publisher, for awards consideration.

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Magical Life of Long Tak Sam

The Magical Life of Long Tack Sam: An Illustrated Memoir Ann Marie Fleming

This is two stories-- the story of how Ann Marie tried to find out about the great-grandfather she just discovered was a world-famous magician and vaudeville performer, and the story of his life.

It’s a graphic novel, but more. There are a lot of photographs and documents in with the drawings, telling this tale.

And what a tale it is.

Long Tack Sam’s origins are a bit hazy (there are a few versions) but he rose to become an international superstar. He was Chinese, his wife was Austrian. They traveled the world and lived all over, fleeing wars and performing.

The family remained largely international in origin and much of Fleming’s work revolves around being multiple ethnicities, visas, and citizenship. Fleming herself was born on Okinawa when it was UN protectorate. She couldn’t leave the island because she didn’t have an exit visa. She didn’t have an exit visa, because you needed an entry visa. She didn’t have an entry visa because she was born there. It’s pretty representative of many of the issues her family goes to through over the years.

After WWII, Long Tack Sam could become a US citizen, but his wife couldn’t because Austria wasn’t under Russian threat.

Visually, the mixed media works really well. Fleming weaves her stories and broader themes in and out in way that makes for a great read and draws you in. You’re fascinated by Long Tack Sam’s life and fame, but also by Fleming’s journey of discovering her family history.

I appreciated the sidebars of contemporary world events that helped ground the story in time. It’s a sweeping story that takes much of the twentieth century and is affected by much of twentieth century history.

Originally, Fleming told this story in film, and the book comes from the film. Sadly, I can’t find the film anywhere to watch. I’d love to see more of this story.

While this is a book published for adults, I think teens will really enjoy it-- especially the exploration of identity and family.

The Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at The Flatt Perspective. Be sure to check it out.

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Reading Magic

Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever (updated and revised) Mem Fox

So, this isn't a book for teens or kids or with kid or teen appeal, but it is a book on child literacy and how to make kids readers, so I think it's still a good Nonficion Monday fix.

At work this week, I wrote an informational sheet for parents about why reading aloud to your kids is super-duper important and really good for them. When I was googling around for some sources to back up the things I've been taught in my youth services career, I found a lot of references to this book. I read the first two chapters on Google books and then went to the bookstore on my lunch break to just buy it. (I would have purchased immediately if it were available as an ebook, but alas and alak.)

I KNOW reading aloud is important to kids. You don't need to convince me. In those first two chapters I had the info I needed for my project, so why did I feel compelled to buy the book to tell me something I already know?

Well, as you hopefully already know from books such as Where Is the Green Sheep?, Fox is a really good story teller and writer. I wanted to read more.

Her basic premis is that we need to read aloud to our kids all that we can and that if we do, they will easily learn to read and become life long readers. Sadly, there's a lot of "research shows..." "experts say..." "studies prove..." but NO SOURCE NOTES. No bibliography. Nothing. There's also no real data, just lots of story after story about her own daughter, her editor's son, some neighborhood kids, and other kids she's come across in her work. Fox was an early literacy prof for a number of years and as she says in her introduction, "I speak with the authority of an international literacy consultant and the intensity of a writer, but I'm most passionate when I speak as an ordinary mother" and that shows. I don't doubt the studies and experts and research exist, but I want sources (mostly so I can follow up and read that research! Because I am a literacy nerd and I need data when I talk to parents about the best way to prep their kids for school.)

Because the evidence is all anecdotal, I think she oversells the benefits of reading aloud. Although she qualifies it at the end that "most children don't learn to read at home. They learn soon after they start school..." during most of the book, her case reads that if you read to your kids a lot, and play literacy games with the text, your kid will teach themselves to read at age 3. And that's not the case. Some will (Dan did) but not all. I mean, her chapter called "The Proof" is only one story about a kid named Justin who could identify his favorite books at 6 months and sit for an hour reading 20 books in a row and at 21 months he had a speaking vocabulary of 500 words and could sight read 20 words. Fox has never met Justin, his mom just emailed her via her website.

I trust what she's saying, I don't doubt her overall point... BUT.

I think the chapter on *how* to read aloud to kids is great. New parents are freaked out about everything and tend to overthink it. The chapter does as good of a job as possible explaining vocal inflection in an entirely written medium. They're things I don't think about a lot as I've always been very good at reading aloud (probably because I was read to so much as a child) but it's a great chapter that I'd also recommend for new youth services librarians who do programming. (I had to read a story as part of my job interview. It's a skill you need to have!)

Her take down of phonics as a reading instruction method is WONDERFUL and while it's not totally applicable to the thrust of this book, I'd LOVE to hear to talk about programs like Accelerated Reader.

There are some great new-to-me points as well. She completely convinced me to never answer "well, why don't you try to sound it out" when asked what a word is. I'm not sure that's something I'd do as a librarian, but I'm sure I would have done it as a mother. But, as Fox explains, when you stop to sound it out, you lose your flow in reading. You forget the rhythm and language, plot and characters of the story. Stopping for that one word makes the rest of the book that much harder. Having someone *give* you the word lets you continue at speed.

Despite my issues with the scholarship involved, I did really enjoy the book, even though I already knew and preached the importance of reading aloud to young children (I mean, Dan read aloud to the Kung Fu Princess before my epidural wore off. Her first read-aloud experience was The Economist.) I think the anecdotes-as-proof style reads more easily/less academically to the lay person (especially as this is targeted at new parents who are probably very sleep deprived) BUT, a few pages of source notes at the end would have been most beneficial.

I don't regret buying it though. It was an easy, fast read and has me all jazzed up about why I do what I do.

Check out today's Nonfiction Monday roundup over at Wrapped in Foil. Be sure to check it out!

Book Provided by... my wallet

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: So You Thought You Couldn't Cut It

So You Thought You Couldn't Cut It, A Beginner's Guide to Wood Carving Jim Calder with Jen Coate

Jim Calder is a Master Carver who teaches workshops to adults and kids using his triangle method to carve a face. While Carter usually carves wood, in his workshops and this book, he uses a sweet potato-- it's the right size, easier for beginners to cut through, and when it dries out and looks a lot like wood.

Steps are clearly explained and each step is accompanied by a large, clear, color picture showing Calder's method. I didn't try to carve a sweet potato, so I can't say for sure, but the book makes it look pretty straightforward and do-able. If I had proper carving knives, I might buy a sweet potato and try it out, but I don't have the right tools, so, alas.

An extra exciting part about this book is Jen Coate. This book was published by the Young Writer's Foundation, which mentors writers in K-12, so it's pretty cool that a high school student was paired with Calder and wrote this book.

Today's Nonfiction Monday is hosted over at Jean Little Library.


Book Provided by... the publisher for Cybils consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: You Just Can't Help It

You Just Can't Help It!: Your Guide to the Wild and Wacky World of Human Behavior Jeff Szpirglas, illustrated by Josh Holinaty

This is a very fun introduction to the science behind human behavior. It covers a wide variety of topics, from the effect color has on you to birth order. From dreaming to spacing out. The reader gets just enough explanation for it to make sense, but just short blurbs on each thing.

Each page spread is full of graphics and color that make this a great book for reluctant readers or one that's easy to dip in and out out. It's the design that really sold this book for me. The short blurbs of information, that all relate to each other so the reader gets a more complete picture, makes some difficult concepts much easier to understand. Coupled with fun pictures, lots of pictures, and a great use of white space, really make this book an easy sell to all sorts of readers. All of this is done without diluting the information presented.

Very fun, and very interesting, it's a wonderful introduction to human behavior, psychology, and biology that kids will love to read.

Today's Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at Perogies and Gyoza. Be sure to check it out!

Book Provided by... the publisher, for Cybils consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Running to Extremes

Running to Extremes: Ray Zahab's Amazing Ultramarathon Journey Steve Pitts

Ray Zahab lacked direction. He drank a lot and smoked a pack a day. He was just getting through life when he realized he needed a change. Several relatives had recently died, sooner than they should, and mostly due to complications from the same lifestyle Ray was living. It was time for a change, so he stopped smoking, cut back on the drinking, and started running. When he heard about the Yukon Ultramarathon (160km in extreme arctic conditions) he thought "why not" and signed up. Never mind that he had never run an actual marathon before. Nevermind that he didn't have the right gear to survive or the training to complete it. Off he went.

Once there, he met other dedicated ultramarathoners who gave him some tips and befriended him. Then, when the ultramarathon started, he ran. And ran. And ran.

And won.

He soon signed up for more ultra-marathons. He quickly learned that he wasn't as prepared as he had to be. He suffered severe injury and setbacks, but he kept signing up and kept getting better. A few years after his first ultra-marathon, he and some of his new running friends decided to run across Northern Africa, for fun. Parts were great, parts were horrible, but they did it.

Zahab started doing more and more long solo runs to raise awareness and money for different causes. He then started Impossibile2Possible, which helps teach kids to reach their dreams, no matter how crazy they seem.

Pitt rights a gripping and readable account of Zahab's life and running. It was one of those books that I picked up thinking I'd read a few pages and then go start dinner and the next thing I know, the book is done and my stomach is loudly protesting.

Seriously, who says "Hmm... let's go run this ultramarathon through the Arctic for shits and giggles?" Zahab's pretty badass and it's pretty cool that he found a way to turn extreme long distance running into something he could use to help other people.

Sadly, this book isn't available in the US (Zahab's Canadian and so is the book.)

Today's Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at A Curious Thing.

Book Provided by... the publisher, for Cybils consideration

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Nonfiction Monday: Dan Eldon Safari as a Way of Life

Dan Eldon: Safari as a Way of Life Jennifer New

Dan Eldon was the son of an American mother and a British father and he grew up in Kenya. Throughout his life, he was always creating art, most notably in his journals (which have been published separately.) He traveled extensively throughout Africa and in the 80s, effortlessly crossed the continent's notable class and race lines. In 1993, while working as a photojournalist in Mogadishu, a mob killed him after an American airstrike killed many elders, women, and children. He was 22.

While writing this book and her previous biography of Eldon, Dan Eldon: The Art of Life, New interviewed over 100 of Eldon's friends and family. The young man presented in these pages is one of endless energy and impossible schemes that easily become reality, a talented artist who was just starting to really find his way.

What most readers will notice right away is the striking design-- laid out to mimic Dan's journals, it is filled with his artwork, photographs, page spreads, and words (in full color.) I was most struck by the ones that are mostly paintings, although many are collages of his friends and family, interspersed with ephemera, words, and drawings.

I would have liked a little more context to really paint how stark the race and class issues were when and where Dan was growing up. A little more explanation of what it was like to be white in Nairobi and going to a largely ex-pat school would be helpful.

Today's Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at Apple with Many Seeds.

Book Provided by... the publisher, for Cybil's consideration.

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Is the End of the World Near?

Is the End of the World Near?: From Crackpot Predictions to Scientific Scenarios Ron Miller

This is a fun and scary book about THE END OF THE WORLD! AHHHHHHH!

It starts with a historical look at how we thought the world was going to end -- omens of comets and eclipses, to Cold War fear. It looks at religious takes on the apocalypse and famous works of fiction about the end of the world (including disaster films like Deep Impact). It also looks at famous end of the world prophesies, like 2012 and various pseudoscience predictions.

Then it looks at very real ways the early might/will end. Like the fact that in a few million years, the sun's going to explode. Or we might kill each other with nuclear warfare. Or a comet might hit and wipe us out like it did the dinosaurs. Or global warming.

I think in all the real ways the world might end, it takes a good look at the chances of that actually happening and what we as people can do to try to prevent them from ever happening.

Over all, it has excellent photographs and illustrations, a great lay-out, and a readable, conversational tone as it explores some heady issues. It might give more sensitive readers nightmares, but I think many kids will find it enthralling.

Today's Nonfiction Monday roundup is over at Ms. Yingling Reads.

Book Provided by... the publisher, for Cybils consideration

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Nonfiction Monday: Witches!

Witches: The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem Rosalyn Schanzer

GUYS! How did this NOT get nominated for the Cybils?! It was a Sibert Honor and totally deserving. It should have been a Cybils book. As a community (myself included) we totally dropped the ball on this one. It wasn't even nominated. WTF?!

Schanzer writes a fascinating account of the Salem witch trials and does an excellent job of putting the frenzy and fear into context. It's gripping and terrifying. Schanzer managers a real sense of immediacy that really makes you feel the fear going through this town. Here's what I love-- often when they talk about the fear of Salem, it seems like everyone was afraid of being falsely accused. Schanzer shows us that many people were actually afraid of being attacked by witches, because it seems like anyone and everyone could be and was a witch.

Even though I knew the story and the people and the facts and the legends, this book broke my heart in a way nothing else about Salem ever has. Schanzer tells us the how, and gives us some possibilities for the why, but the why has been lost over the centuries.

Also, the design is amazing. Schanzer has illustrated the book with pictures done in Ampersand Scratchboard, meant to mimic 17th century woodcuts. Throughout the book, red accents and details are used to great effect.

Plus, end notes! And an author's note! My only reservation is that there isn't a lot of context given for relations with the Native Americans. This is taking place against the backdrop of the Second Indian War and "Indian" is the term used throughout. There are several raids by Native forces in the book (one of the possible explanations is post-traumatic stress as many of the initial accusers witnessed their parents and other family members murdered during raids.) Now, this isn't a major focus of the book so it didn't need to dwell, but a sentence or two saying why these raids were happening and what the war was about would have gone a long way.

Overall though, a really strong book.

Be sure to check out the Nonfiction Monday round-up over at Gathering Books!

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.