Special Effects Technician

November 1, 2011

Gr 5-9-A useful resource for students, this set offers comprehensive (at times overly detailed) information about high-interest careers. Sometimes arid chapters introduce figures active in the featured fields, and then cover how to prepare for each job, a typical day, and what the future may hold in each industry. Variations in career categories are explored (such as an actor who earns her living by reading recorded books for the blind), and pragmatic advice such as "talent does not guarantee success" as well as statistics about expected income help set a realistic tone. Color photos of behind-the-scenes and famous figures are balanced by frequent lengthy sidebars. Motivated students doing research will find a wealth of information here; reluctant readers or browsers may be intimidated by the expansive blocks of text.

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