The Smithsonian Institution

Children's Literature - Kathleen Karr

The long running "Cornerstones of Freedom" series offers another of its short, illustrated essays-this time on the venerable Smithsonian. While this is basically a guide to the fifteen museums and National Zoo under the Smithsonian umbrella, it also includes a glossary, index and useful timeline. The best part of the book is the opening introduction on Smithson himself and his unexpected bequest to a country he never visited. Several early photos showing the jam-packed offices of scientists at work are also amusing. They give special meaning to the term "the Nation's Attic-" and a period feel for what museums used to look like.