MotherReader

There are books that you need to let speak for themselves. In this case, with the the table of contents. In Transformed: How Everyday Things Are Made, by Bill Slavin, the reader finds out how the following things are made:

Baseballs, CDs, chewing gum, dolls, footballs, guitars, marbles, neon signs, plastic dinosaurs, ships in a bottle, soccer balls, surfboards, teddy bears, whistles, aluminum foil, books, cat litter, crayons, cutlery, dental floss, dry pet food, erasers, matches, mirrors, pencils, plastic wrap, pottery, soap, stick-on bandages, toothpaste, wax candles, wire, bread, cereal, cheese, chocolate, cola, fortune cookies, ice cream, jellybeans, ketchup, licorice, milk, pasta, peanut butter, potato chips, salt, tap water, tea, yogurt, blue jeans, cotton, polyester, rayon, running shoes, silk, wool, work gloves, brick, cement, glass, iron and steel, lumber, paper, petroleum, plastic resins, recycling, and rubber.

There is often some background information on the item in question. For instance, in the pages on cutlery, we find out that forks did not really catch on in Europe until the 1400s. Sometimes there is a quick fact in the insert. Also on cutlery, we learn that “One industrial hammer blow delivers a force on the dies of 180 t (200 tons). This is like thirty African elephants jumping onto them all at once.”

With clear descriptions and clever drawings, this is a fascinating book just chock full of information. While ideal for any library and the bookshelf of any curious kid, I think it would be an perfect classroom book for kids to leaf through at reading time. Take it slow, as this book is best approached a chapter or two at a time.