How to Go Anywhere (and Not Get Lost)

May 1, 2020
Since prehistoric times, human beings have been trying not to get lost; Aschim traces how we got better and better at finding our way. Before the advent of radio waves and GPS (which the book also covers), humans navigated using everything from stars and ocean swells to trees and sand dunes. Aschim traces how humans used these natural systems to build increasingly sophisticated navigation tools, such as the chronometer and the compass rose. Interspersed among the historical and scientific descriptions are activities designed to reinforce concepts and to help readers become master navigators themselves, such as making a sextant and practicing dead reckoning. The book is at its finest when it explores broad scientific and social concepts, such as the inherent navigational capacities of the human brain or the seafaring practices of the ancient Polynesians. Unfortunately, as the book continues, these moments grow fewer and fewer, the text bogging down with lengthy mathematical explanations and dense exposition. The book's hectic design--including its frenetic color scheme--makes it even more difficult for readers to concentrate. Additionally, while Aschim admirably highlights navigational advances made by a range of nations and cultures, from the nomadic Bedouins to the ancient Chinese, he does not apply this same critical lens to the European conquests, which he describes as exploration rather than the dangerous beginnings of colonialism. Focuses too much on the mundane and too little on the sublime. (afterword, index) (Nonfiction. 9-12)

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January 1, 2021

Gr 3-7-Humans have been navigating the globe for millennia. Long before GPS came into being, people used the landscape, the ocean, the sun, moon, and stars to find their way from place to place. This book begins with a brief history of navigation and the basic principles upon which it is based. Topics include identifying direction using trees and plants, navigation using the stars, and modern tools that help people find their way (satellites, radar, and GPS). Seventeen activities encourage readers to get up and experience the principles and skills described in the text. Each activity lists supplies needed and step-by-step instructions for completing the project. The illustrations feature sketches, photographs, old portraits, maps, and colorful diagrams. VERDICT A nice addition to school collections where geography and human movement are studied.-Heidi Grange, Summit Elem. Sch., Smithfield, UT

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