This new series from innovative publisher Allen & Unwin is exciting. Here at last is a non-fiction offering which kids will love to read – for the sheer pleasure of it as well as to learn. With so many non-fiction offerings providing information in a format which encourages searching just for whatever answers a child is seeking, it is refreshing to find one which is deisgned to be read cover to cover, for the sheer fun of it.
Written by authors many children will already be familiar with, the books are full of interesting facts, gory details and funny tidbits, supported by cartoon-style illustrations. The text is accessible but not patronising and written in kid-speak.
The first three titles in the series include Pigs Do Fly by author/illustrator Terry Denton, which explores the history of flight, The Romans Were the Real Gangsters by John and Joshua Wright, sharing some of the gorier bits of Roman histroy and There are Bugs in Your Bed, by Heather Catchpole and Vanessa Woods, examining the insect world. All are suitable for school libraries and as classroom readers, but are equally likely to appeal for private reading.
Allen & Unwin is to be commended for the work put into developing this outstanding new series.
It’s True! There are Bugs in Your Bed, by Heather Catchpole & Vanessa Woods, illustrated by Craig Smith
It’s True! The Romans Were the Real Gangsters, by John & Joshua Wright, illustrated by Joshua Wright
It’s True! Pigs Do Fly, written & illustrated by Terry Denton
All from Allen & Unwin, 2004