Facts! One for every day of the year
Reviewed By Grasshopper2 November 13, 2017
Author Tracey Turner. Illustrated Fatti BUrke
Distributor: Bloomsbury
ISBN: 9781408884621
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children
Release Date: October 2017
Website: https://www.bloomsbury.com
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This wonderful hardback picture book is just the thing to impress a young reader who is at the inquisitive age. It contains a fact for every day of the year. These are well set out, with small blocks of text and plenty of lively, colourful illustrations. In the introduction, the author says, “No one should ever be without a fascinating fact at their fingertips…..Find out which animal does a cube shaped poo, and some ancient cures for toothache.”
Facts which happen on specific dates are circled so the reader may be aware of that date. For example, the first of November is the Day of the Dead, celebrated in Mexico. Families decorate the graves of their loved ones with flowers, and they have a picnic and tell happy stories about the relative who has died. Another date to remember is the twenty second of May when the strongest earthquake ever recorded happened in Chile. It registered 9.5 on the Richter scale.
There is a mixture of scientific fact, such as the information about DNA and how it is the instruction manual for all of your cells. Amusing facts, claiming that playing the didgeridoo can help reduce snoring, are also included, as well as many facts about animals such as cockroaches can live for up to a week without a head…are shared. Information about nature and the natural world, mechanical devices, and the human body are also presented. We learn that ancient Egyptians took great care with the preparation of dead bodies, but they didn’t think the brain was useful and so threw it away.
This is certainly a book for every day of the year but see if you can stop there! The book is beautifully presented, with each double- page spread having a different background colour. The text is clear and concise. Each day of the year is given as a heading and the information for that day is presented. Did you know that in Chile on the thirty first of December, people eat a spoonful of lentils for prosperity?
The front cover of the book shows many small pictures to invite the reader’s curiosity to open it. This is a great concept and one that could be shared as a family activity, or even a classroom game. No matter where your interest lies, there is something for everyone. With Christmas approaching, this would be an ideal gift for young readers, (and their families).