Tanks

Children's Literature

Here's a series that does exactly what it purports to do—introduces military vehicles (photographed on the ground at Colorado's Fort Carson), explains what they do, indicates where the people sit, and what the controls do. In an ending "Up Close" section, the camera draws back to show the sum of the whole vehicle with arrows and numbers keyed to the parts just discussed. It's a fine choice for high-interest reading with boys, especially, who need practice with simple repetitive but not insultingly easy text of about four sentences to a page. Except for a soldier or two at the controls, it's all about big, powerful, useful machines. A glossary (there's no index) of seven to ten words defines and shows how to pronounce key vocabulary. Part of the "Military Machines at Work" series. 2002, The Child's World,
— Susan Hepler