Category: DK Canada

In The Mythology Book, eighty of the world’s greatest myths and characters, from the gods of Greek mythology to the Norse heroes, retold and explained with engaging text and bold graphics.

About The Mythology Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained

From early creation stories to classical hero narratives and the recurring theme of the afterlife, experience each myth and unravel the meanings behind the stories, getting to the heart of the importance of mythology to different cultures worldwide. More than just stories, myths are a testament to the amazing creativity of humans striving to explain and make sense of the world around them. Here you will discover Zeus, god of the sky and ruler of the Olympian gods, and Loki, the cunning trickster with a knack for causing havoc, aided by his ability to change shape and gender. Beyond the gods and goddesses of Ancient Greek, Roman, and Norse myths, this book delves into the stories of the Australian aborigines, the Cherokee, and the Aztecs, each brimming with amazing characters and insights into human existence.

This newest title in the bestselling Big Ideas series pairs engaging visual style with global coverage of world myths–profiling everything from the well-known tales of the Greeks, Norsemen, and Egyptians to the legends of the Caribbean, the Americas, Oceania, and East Asia–bringing the wisdom of the ages to life.

My Thoughts

I am a HUGE history buff – from books to movies to television series, I love it all. In my undergraduate degree all of my elective courses were in the study of Ancient Greeks, Romans, Aztecs and Mayans, to be even more honest, those are the only textbooks I still have from my University days. There is just something so incredible about diving into the past, learning about beliefs, religions, myths and culture. These civilizations shaped so much of what we know today and some of our own beliefs and religions, how can you not want to learn more about them?

This beautiful hard cover book is just slightly smaller than letter sized. The book covers everything from Ancient Greece and Rome to Northern Europe to Asia to The Americas to Ancient Egypt and Africa and Oceania. In logical order, we follow the path of the stories and myths for each culture as they grew and evolved (for example in Ancient Greece, how Gaia gave birth to Ouranos, her children were born and how they destroyed their Father and how the cycle went on). Each myth begins with  a brief overview of the theme of that subject, the setting and the key figures. Throughout each section, there are two page spreads that contain the main themes coming up with designs appropriate to that culture and gives you a great hint of what is to come. Each story spans roughly two to four pages and contains highlighted quotes and inserts that contain information on key figures, stories, legends and more. I love love love all of the images that were included in this book. They have included paintings and artifacts that help depict the story while giving us additional context into the story.

This is an amazing book that you will want to read time and time again. With its easy flow, you can come back to it, re-start at a different culture, fast forward to a specific story or figure that you want to learn more about and so on. It is a great read for both young adults and adults alike to help gain a better understanding of the important cultures that made us who we are today.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and DK Canada.

Rating: 5+++/5

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

After reading What’s Weird on Earth, Earth will never seem the same again to your child and to you as the parent!

About What’s Weird on Earth

Find weird and wonderful facts about our extraordinary world, like all the wind patterns on the planet or each country’s national dish or the bizarre rock formations on each continent. These are shown visually on world maps, making them easier to understand and breath taking to behold.

Geography, history, STEM concepts, sociology, reading, technology, and more all come together in this exciting and educational atlas that presents the world’s weirdest facts visually on maps page by page. See hidden underground waterways and ancient patterns carved in the desert sand. Learn how 29,000 rubber duckies helped scientists trace ocean currents after a shipwreck. See where lightning strikes the most on Earth, and where it never strikes at all. See maps from previous centuries to understand how people perceived our planet thousands of years ago. Planet Earth will never seem the same again!

Our Thoughts

What’s Weird on Earth is a beautiful, hard cover 160 page book full of everything that you wanted to know or didn’t even know you wanted to know. Man eating trees? Red snow in Russia? All of the bizarre and spectacular things you didn’t even know will come to life in this amazing book.

This visually stunning book is divided into several sections; nature, supernatural, people, places, history and fun facts with sub-topics in each section. I am a visual learner myself and this book is perfect for children and adults alike as the stories and facts pop to life. You are immersed in a brilliant colorful display of history and facts as you take a trip around the world. You want to touch the pages and take it all in at once. The illustrations are bright and bold which helps to capture and hold your child’s attention.

Like many of their books, this one is colour coded so you know which section you are in allowing you to skim through to find exactly what you are looking for based on interest. Each two page spread contains a map of the world with pop up images and captions of interesting facts over their location on the map. They do a great job of capturing a wealth of information into a short blurb (which is no easy task). They give you just enough information to spark an interest in a new area which you can use to help them dive deeper into their educational journey by doing more research and discovery together, whether it be in the library or at home through Google. How can you resist not learning more about something as interesting as man-eating trees or monsters spotted in the ocean? Your imagination will soar with all of these new and somewhat bizarre facts about the world around us.

We could not put this gorgeous book down. We have read it several times already as we seem to pick up on new bits each time. It comes in hard cover format which is great for young readers who are not always as gentle as we like them to be and they can bring it everywhere with them. It is a great read for young and older children who love to learn and explore the world around them but who also appreciate the bizarre and different things in the world which makes it special.

You can purchase a copy of this book on DK Canada and Amazon.

Rating: 5/5

Disclosure: We received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Over 30 gloopy, gooey, colourful slime recipes will mesmerise youngsters by showing them how to make and have fun with slime in The Slime Book.

About The Slime Book

Play, poke, push, pull, and pop awesome easy-to-follow slime recipes, all of which use inexpensive, accessible, and safe everyday products that can be found in your home. Create Monster Slime with googly eyes, prepare for an eruption with Volcanic Slime and tuck in to some yummy edible chocolate slime – all of this and more!

All projects in The Slime Book are shown with clear step-by-step images and a vibrant final image of the slimy creations. Learn the science behind these slime creations with amazing fact boxes and carry on the fun with recipe variations. The latest addictive kids’ activity, making your own slime is the ultimate sticky and squidgy fun – are you ready to create slime? Then get goo-ing!

Our Thoughts

March is one of those funny months where it is wet, cold and dreary outside most of the month. Most days are spent inside  because of the wet weather. While this is great for our gardens, for parents this can be a nightmare! We need to be armed with loads of activities and crafts to keep our children busy and occupied.

One great solution? Get slimey with The Slime Book!

Kids love slime and I think if parents got over the mess it can make and be honest, we love it too. The feeling of the slime as it passes over your hands (sometimes it just grosses me out) and the feeling of wanting to get someone with your slime (watch out kids) can be the best feelings ever! How can you not fall in love with the gooey greatness of slime?

The Slime Book has an amazing selection of slime recipes using everyday items in your home (baking soda, glue, etc). The recipes were very easy to follow and had large, bold pictures to accompany them. Each slime recipe was easy for us to do together and for the kids to mix up on their own. They all had a rating from easy to hard which helped us to identify which ones would be easier for them to complete on their own and which ones would need a bit more supervision. They had some really unique ideas on how to make your slime pop (sparkles, pom poms, etc.) which I have never seen before or would have thought possible. The mess was minimal and well worth the joy on their faces!

With enough recipes to keep both your child and you occupied throughout the whole month, The Slime Book is a definite must have item this March. You can purchase your own copy of The Slime Book on DK Canada.

What do you plan on making this March?

Disclosure: I received the above book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.