The Silk Road

April 1, 2011

Gr 4-6-This overview of the history, geography, and importance of the Silk Road, while initially promising, falls short. Well-organized chapters are nicely balanced by sidebars and insets offering "Words to Know," "Fascinating Facts," or further discussions of special topics, and by illustrations. However, the sheer number of names and facts might overwhelm readers, and illustrations sometimes appear crudely drawn or blatantly digital. The crafts and related activities provide both the greatest draw of the book and the greatest disappointment. Kids will be excited and proud to complete relevant projects, recipes, and experiments, such as using salt to keep water from freezing or making their own paper. However, the activities are deceptively complex. Only a few of them suggest adult assistance, and most kids will struggle to complete the tasks on their own. A parent, or better yet, a teacher, will have to provide materials, supervise potentially dangerous steps, and clarify complicated instructions. While some activities are simply harder than they look, some are completely unreasonable for a child to do alone, such as bargaining with a vendor. Give this book to teachers planning lessons on the Silk Road, or to parents who will work with their children. Young people left on their own are likely to give up before getting anything of value from the book.-Heather Talty, Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School, New York City

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2011
Grades 4-6 Following the lead of the more than two-dozen other titles in the Build It Yourself series, this survey uses a select but diverse set of handicraft projects to enhance general accounts of the Silk Roads major cultures, geographical features, arts, inventions, and long history. The central narrative is supported with maps, a time line, and a generous set of further resources and may be more valuable to researchers of the Silk Roads past, present, and significance than the projects, which range from making lagman noodles from scratch to building a real abacus to constructing a model yurt to keeping a travel journal modeled on the itchy-footed Ibn Battutas, as well as covering effective techniques for market bargaining. The projects vary radically in difficulty and often require a certain level of artistic skill or such hard-to-find materials as old bicycle-tire tubes and clear flat glass marbles. Though monochrome illustrations that are largely redrawn pictures of artifacts or scenery give this overview a utilitarian look, the topic is intriguing, and the volume will appeal to an interested reader.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)