Children - Social Issues, Teens - Hot Issues

The Facts about Alcohol

Name: The Facts about Alcohol
Author: Ted Gottfried
ISBN: 9780761443483

by Ted Gottfried, Katherine Follett

Available on Bookshop Write a review

Books.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.

Overview

Millions of people enjoy alcohol, and millions of others are destroyed by it. What are the real facts about alcohol? Read Alcohol to find out.

Synopsis

Millions of people enjoy alcohol, and millions of others are destroyed by it. What are the real facts about alcohol? Read Alcohol to find out.

Children's Literature

A part of a series published by Benchmark Books focusing on various drugs available legally or illegally to young people, this book gives a historical perspective of alcohol. Beginning with a description of how numerous groups of people discovered alcohol and its mysterious effects at about the same time in history, Gottfried traces the use of this drug from ancient times through the prohibition era in the United States. In addition, he explores thoroughly the positive and negative effects of alcohol consumption, with the caveat that the positive effects of drinking one to two drinks per day have been exclusively found in mature adults, and the effects of alcohol consumption of young adults and teens is largely believed to be negative. The final chapter describes a number of self-help groups to turn to if the reader or someone in his/her family may be an alcoholic. The text is interspersed with historical photographs and art work, as well as sidebars and frequent headings, making it reader friendly and highly engaging. The back of the book contains a glossary, a bibliography, and a list of web sites where more information can be found. For those curious about the effects of alcohol, or those doing a report for school, this would prove to be a highly useful book.

Reviews

There are no reviews yet. Log in to write one.

Editorials

Children's Literature - Wendy M. Smith-D'Arezzo

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up-Gottfried includes historical aspects of alcohol and society, including humans' first experimentations with fermentation, Prohibition, and the temperance movement; related laws and legislation; and definition, causes, treatment, and effects. Levert discusses the effects of steroids on the body, health risks, the law, prevention, and treatment. The medicinal use of steroids is very briefly mentioned. Menhard addresses the types of inhalants, the history, dangers, effects, available help for abuse of these drugs, and the laws regulating them. All three titles have readable, well-organized texts, and good use of color, graphics, photographs, tables, diagrams, and labels helps to spark readers' interest. Many of the sidebars are stories of people affected by these drugs. Addresses for organizations that can help are appended. Balanced, quality discussions attractively packaged.-Beth Jones, Shelby County High School, Shelbyville, KY Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-7–Presenting the “history, effects, and dangers” of these drugs is not easy, yet these authors do just that in compact and concise packages. Salient and interesting points of history are noted, such as sidebar information about Carry Nation, who strong-armed bars by wielding an axe against their stock (Alcohol), or the fact that the colony of Virginia required farmers to grow hemp (Marijuana). Smooth transitions bring readers up-to-date with present laws. Each book provides clear explanations about effects, followed by diagrams of the body to clarify the specific organs/body systems that suffer the most damage. The presentations are straightforward, especially in the acknowledgment that because of peer pressure, the decision to try drugs is often made without knowing all about the possible consequences. This series provides an excellent starting point for remedying that problem.