Herbert Hoover, our thirty-first president

Children's Literature

This entry in the well-written "Our Presidents" series provides an overview of Herbert Hoover's life, including his early years in Iowa and Oregon, his rise to political life and important aspects of his presidency. A variety of photographs show his family, his work in Australia and China, his early career and his official government activities. Other outtake pages include information about his religion of Quakerism, the Bonus Army, feeding Europeans after World War I, and a section about his First Lady, the unusual Lou Hoover who had a geology degree. Sidebars include interesting facts and picture captions are informative and lengthy enough to inform casual browsers. Each book in the series ends with a glossary defining highlighted words in the text, a timeline specific to the president's life, a complete table of presidents through George W. Bush with their home states, life spans, presidential spans, political party and the name of their first ladies. Included are a page of "Presidential Facts" and numerous web sites and relevant suggested other resources, as well as an index. All in all, it's a strong, informative and very readable contribution to the literature about presidents for upper elementary and middle school readers. 2002, The Child's World, $27.07. Ages 10 to 14. Reviewer: Susan Hepler