McClellan, Ray. Maori Warriors.

McClellan, Ray.   Maori Warriors.   Scholastic/ Childrens Press   24p   $15.95  978-1-60014-745-6   elem    Series: History's Greatest Warriors. (Scholastic/Childrens)   VG-BNes          

       

The Maoris of New Zealand were truly one of the fiercest of the warrior tribes.  This slim volume offers an excellent insight into the life of Maori warriors through discussions of their battles, training, equipment, and final decline with their adoption of English muskets, which helped decimate their numbers.  The book is profusely illustrated with photographs of contemporary Maoris recreating their cultural mores through their tattoos and clothing.  Maori words are explained in the context of the chapters and there is an English glossary at the end, as well as a bibliography of books and web sites.  The book will serve both as a fascinating look at an unusual people and a high-low introduction to a little-studied area of the world.  This excellent series contains fourteen titles that describe some of the most fearsome warriors around the world.      It is highly recommended for elementary and middle schools.             -– Susan Ogintz  

Dittmar, Brian. Mongol Warriors.

Dittmar, Brian.   Mongol Warriors.  Scholastic/ Childrens Press   24p  $23.00 978-0-531-20780-2       elem/ms     Series History's Greatest Warriors (Scholastic/Childrens)  E-BN         

Using photographs of real-life reenactments, the Mongol Warriors, their equipment and their training come to life for today’s students in this, an excellent book for fans of military strategy or of Genghis Khan. It will appeal to those fans in grades 3-8.   

The crisp, detailed photographs will capture the eye of any casual browser or student who needs information for a report.  This is the perfect book to mesh with a biography of Genghis Khan.  The book explains how the warriors trained and the discipline required to be an excellent warrior. It describes their equipment and its use and explains the military strategy of the warriors.  This book makes the centuries-old warriors seem contemporary.  With glossary words highlighted in the text, a good index, and references for further reading, this book will serve report writers well.    

The series History’s Greatest Warriors will intrigue readers who love the strategy, equipment, and lifestyle of disciplined warriors. Glossary, index and further reading coupled with crisp, detailed photographs make this a perfect book for report writers.          -- Lois McNicol

Dinzeo, Paul. Spartans.

Dinzeo, Paul.  Spartans.  Scholastic/ Childrens Press  24p  $21.95      978-0-531-20784-0 elem/ms     Series: History's Greatest Warriors (Scholastic/Childrens)  VG-BNes         

This title in the History’s Greatest Warriors series from the Torque imprint tells the story of the Spartan warriors.  Using great illustrations and light text, it identifies the ancient Spartans and then discusses about their training and weapons.  It introduces their tactics and two famous battles.  It provides a brief introduction to Greek history through the warriors of ancient Sparta.

The illustrations of fierce fighting men will attract young boys.  Several appear to be photographs of costumed actors.  The battle illustrations, on the other hand, are obviously drawn and don’t have the same impact.

The glossary is simple and explains highlighted words from the text.  This is especially helpful for the terms that came from the Greek.  The resources list on the "To Learn More" page includes three books and only the publisher’s Factsurfer web site, which is barely adequate.

This title will attract young male readers but could also be helpful for middle-school reluctant readers or students reading well below grade level.

The History’s Greatest Warriors series from the Torque imprint includes 14 titles, each of which highlights a particular group of warriors, mostly from ancient history.  The books are appropriate for grades 3-7.                                                                      --Joan Theal

 

Brew, Jim Pirates

Brew, Jim   Pirates     Scholastic/ Childrens Press   24p   $21.95     

978-0-531-20781-9       elem        Series: History's Greatest Warriors (Scholastic/Childrens)        Average          

This short nonfiction selection presents basic information about pirates.  Included are a brief description of pirate ships and a history of piracy.

     

There are three positive and two negative sides to this book.  On the positive side, the pictures are lively and interesting, and the glossary is a nice feature that supports younger readers.  In addition, the writer has not "dumbed down" his vocabulary; the words he has chosen are authentic terms, useful for vocabulary acquisition.  On the other hand, a negative feature is that the sentences describing pirates and their job are overly simple, making the book suitable only for younger elementary-school children.  But even more important on the negative side, the book is just not that interesting. 

Children want exciting stories about pirates, not a how-to book that describes their equipment and their ships.  The author’s purpose is only to present the basics, and if the classroom teacher hopes to introduce the topic to his/her class, then the book is acceptable.  However, if the teacher hopes to inspire literacy, this book misses the boat. 

At the end, there is a glossary and a list of resources, followed by a short index.  All in all, this book does not meet expectations as one in the series History’s Greatest Warriors, which includes books about many of the world’s famous "tough guys".  Aztecs, Comanches, Mongols, Samurai and Spartans are just a few of the topics in the series.  Each book presents basics about the history of each group, the materials they used to accomplish the job, and the targets of their wrath.  -- Martha Squaresky