Yoga for Fun!

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

Yoga has been around for centuries, and once again it seems to be in vogue. I know how important it is to stretch and maintain flexibility and I love attending yoga classes. We learn how to relax, concentrate, breathe and do the various positions correctly to bring the most benefit to our bodies. What I learned was that there are many kinds of yoga, but I did not know that there were more than 100 different kinds. I learned that most of what I do falls within the category of hata yoga and ashtanga yoga—stretching and breathing and a series of movements. Like most things, yoga needs to be practiced, but unlike some things, it takes little equipment and can be carried out in short segments. The text presents basic poses such as cat and dog along with their Sanskrit names. There are examples of the sun salutations. It is not until well near the last pages of the book that the discussion moves from adults performing yoga to a spread about yoga in schools. Young children are shown enjoying the stretching and breathing exercises. The concluding pages present information about famous people who have been involved in yoga, a yoga timeline, yoga words to know and where to learn more. There is an index. I am not sure that the target ages for the book as claimed by the publisher are appropriate; perhaps 10 and up would be better. While yoga is appropriate for younger kids, they may not be interested in the history, Sanskrit or looking at adults in most of the illustrations—picturing younger kids may have made the book more appealing to the intended audience. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6
Both books explain a bit of the philosophy and history behind these disciplines, describe several postures and moves, and conclude with a section on the practice in modern life. Koontz discusses tai chi as both exercise and martial art, and Studelska introduces both the postures and ethics of yoga. The discussions of the history and modern applications are largely successful (Tai Chi is less so in its ambiguous treatment of energy), but the sections on the postures and moves are confusing and frustrating. In Yoga , the descriptions are at least broken down step-by-step, but Tai Chi uses full paragraphs, with only one photo to show a movement process. As introductions to their subjects the books are quite good, but for use as practice guides, they fall short.
—Alana AbbottCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.