I'm always delighted to find engaging and informative nonfiction
books for primary students. Children who are just beginning to read
independently appreciate (and need) a wide variety of literature to
explore. The All About Series was designed to "give new
readers a nonfiction reference series they can read, and to develop
an awareness of what Canada is, and what it means to be Canadian."
The first goal is fairly straightforward and not too hard to reach.
The second is more complex and demanding, if only because there are
so many different senses of what it means to be Canadian. Nevertheless,
these seven paperbacks on Canada's "six geographical regions"
(and one overview on all of Canada) are sensibly organized, full of
basic but generally important (and accurate) facts, along with unusually
well-reproduced photographs and illustrations.
Each booklet (they range from 29-49 pages) is made to look like a
series of postcards. On each page a color photograph or illustration
is paired with descriptive text about the region. The booklets include
geologic history and natural features, climate, flora and fauna, people
and resource-based occupations, and more. Yes, this is a lot to cover,
and that's both the strength and a possible weakness of the set I
saw. The sheer breadth and diversity of this country is truly amazing,
and at times these small booklets strain at the seams to contain it.
There is a detailed glossary and an index at the back of each book
to offer helpful pointers, but young readers will still need the guidance
of teachers and parents to make sense of the wealth of facts. Taken
together, the books make a small encyclopedia on Canada's regions.
The postcard "theme" could have been used to even better
advantage as a focus for some of the information, which in its present
form may simply be overwhelming for some young readers. Perhaps a
young traveler could have been created to visit the six regions and
write about what she noticed in particular. Or a resident of each
region could speak about the place he calls home. Or, the authors
could have scaled back their use of specialized vocabulary. Even with
the excellent definitions presented at the back, there is quite a
bit of new vocabulary in each booklet. This will challenge many, and
frustrate some. But these are relatively small worries. In fact, just
before reviewing the series, I was browsing in a local children's
bookstore and recognized their distinctive covers on a wall display.
Two seven or eight year-old girls were flipping through "The
Cordillera" and exclaiming about places that looked familiar,
and a few that just looked "awesome." Surely that's the
kind of endorsement the authors are looking for from their audience.
Barb McDermott and Gail McKeown have given primary teachers of social
studies a rare treat: a visually appealing, nicely produced, and above
all, accurate geographical resource for curious learners.