On the Construction Site by Carron Brown and Bee Johnson
| On the Construction Site by Carron Brown and Bee Johnson | |
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| Category: Children's Non-Fiction | |
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Reviewer: Zoe Morris
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| Summary: A behind the scenes building book, perfect for curious little minds | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 36 | Date: July 2015 |
| Publisher: Ivy Press | |
| ISBN: 978-1782402695 | |
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Building buildings in the topic of this interactive book that shows construction from plans to completion. For the right little boy (or girl) it will no doubt be a hit.
There are two types of parents in this world, and this book is equally well suited to both. Type one are those who dread the Why? How? Why? questions that come with childhood learning where they want to know everything about everything. And by everything we mean things you've probably never thought about and might not know the answer to. Like how they make a skyscraper stand so tall without it collapsing, drifting or generally disintegrating. Type two are parents who know the answers. In this case, they may well work in the construction field, live and breathe this sort of thing, and are just trying to find a way to introduce their day to day life to their offspring. Whichever camp you best align with, this book works for you.
Kids like to build things, clumsily at first (block towers that fall over if you look at them funny) and then with more skill, like Lego structures that have overlapping joins for stability. Oh yes, I was a Lego kid. I was never really that interested in 'proper' construction until a few years ago when I was on the 16th floor of a tower block in Mexico City and it started shaking during an earthquake, at which point it was probably a little late. So anyway, I would fall into the first type of parent, while the Boy, who has his own construction business would be the second. Thus, for the purpose of accuracy, I made him read this book, just to check it stayed on message. His verdict? Pretty good.
This is a shine-a-light book which is best read with a torch, though a lamp can work too. These books uncover the hidden secrets of various topics be they the rainforest or the seashore and the idea is that by shining a light behind the page you can make a hidden image appear, though in a push you can just turn the page to see it as it's printed clearly on the other side. This time the move is away from nature and into construction, and the book shows how a building is built from drawing up the plans to moving in day, with all the various technical construction bits in between – foundations, welding, wiring and so on.
As with other books in this series, the size and shape may say pre-school but the content and design lend themselves to a slightly older audience. Part of it is the coordination and ability to shine the light behind each page – something that may be tricky for smaller hands while holding the book steady, and part is the content and vocabulary – the foundations are levelled', the beams are covered in steel sheeting and so on. It would make a good reference book for school projects in the future so it's worth keeping hold of even once they more on to more grown up sized books because the information is clearly laid out and accessible.
As for the topic itself, I didn't find it as interesting as the nature books but if you have a kid who is mad on building (and buildings) it would be perfect. It's easy to follow the steps to see how skyscrapers are erected, and you do get the satisfaction of seeing how it all ends – families get to move into their new homes, which is always nice. I just didn't find it that fascinating a topic or one that I would want to read and re-read again and again.
I like this series because the books are interactive and informative, so if you see it as a reference book it's definitely worth a look, otherwise the market may be a bit niche (it definitely has a more formal, non-fiction feel to it) but for any little one who is obsessed with building sites and construction in general, you're going to need a copy on the bookshelf at home.
Thanks go to the publishers for supplying this book.
Construction by Sally Sutton and Brian Lovelock covers the same themes for a slightly younger audience.
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You can read more book reviews or buy On the Construction Site by Carron Brown and Bee Johnson at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy On the Construction Site by Carron Brown and Bee Johnson at Amazon.com.
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