Smarten Up

School Library Journal

Gr 7-10-- Living in the country or at the seashore, where there are more negative ions in the atmosphere, makes people clear-headed and happy. This is just one of the many ideas mentioned, in addition to exercise, diet, and sleep, as ways of taking good care of the brain. After a brief orientation to how the brain functions, as well as left brain/right brain orientation and male/female differences, Yepsen gives ideas and suggestions for maximizing the use of one's brain, as well as tantalizing tidbits of information. Simple line drawings and diagrams extend and clarify concepts under discussion. Yepsen's writing style is chatty, which seems at odds with the seriousness of the subject, but it makes the book more accessible to younger students. From time to time, information is oversimplified, but many positive self-help ideas are included, from improving creativity in writing or drawing to increasing memory. This book would be useful with a study-skills or teen-living class. James Greene and David Lewis' Thinking Better (Rawson, 1982; o.p.) is for older readers who want to determine their own strengths; Melvin Berger's Mind Control (Crowell, 1985) takes a narrower view of the brain, concentrating on ways of manipulating it. --Pam Spencer, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Fairfax County, VA