Kayaking

Children's Literature

Hop inside the cockpit and pilot your kayak down the river or out into the sea. Such is the inferred invitation sent out by this wet-’n-wild title in the “Outdoor Adventure” series. Laid out in bite-sized chunks of text with plenty of charts and graphics, the titles in this series cater nicely to their audience, late elementary/middle school students with fluent web literacy. Also helping to reach the audience are glossary-supported, sport-specific terms that boost credibility and readability. Topics covered range from the necessary “Getting Started” to the obligatory “Staying Safe.” Standing out as most interesting amidst the expected headings is a “Kayaking Levels” section that explains the river kayaking classes of difficulty. Also scattered through the pages are “Get Connected” bubbles, which offer websites that provide further detail about the headings they fall under. Most of the offered links are still current, beneficial, and free of excessive advertising. While this is one of the less-interesting titles in the series in terms of exciting details and text fluency, it still offers useful kayaking information in a vivid, easy-to-digest format. Reviewer: Paul Walter