Everglades

School Library Journal

Gr 5-9Two of the most exciting places in the U.S. have inspired two dull books. The cluttered layout features many small photographs with details too shadowy or distant to be informative. Illustrations and captions appear all over the pages, including in the margins and on top of one another, interfering with the flow of the dry text. Pale blue lines ineffectively offset boxes of smaller type with facts that could have easily been integrated into the general format. Maps and drawings don't include scale or useful labels for interpreting the passages of time and history through and around these areas. Historical, geological, and ecological information is accurate, but the titles fail to inspire a true sense of wonder. For spectacular photographs, check out The Everglades (1993) and Yellowstone (1992, both Child's World).Susan Oliver, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System