Katie Kennedy
Presidents Decoded
A solid, accessible reference for kids who want to know the 'who' and 'why' behind the portraits in their school hallway without getting bogged down in dry textbook prose.
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Ireland
by Mary Atkinson
Nonfiction · ages 10–14 · 850L · 1989
A dated but solid factual primer on Irish history and culture; useful as a reference guide, though modern illustrated alternatives may engage kids better.
Albert Einstein and His Inflatable Universe
by Dr. Mike Goldsmith
Nonfiction · ages 9–12 · 820L · 2008
Competent science biography that explains relativity in child-accessible language, but the metaphor of an 'inflatable universe' oversimplifies and the book doesn't quite make Einstein's thinking come alive.
The Young United States, 1783–1830
by Edwin Tunis
Nonfiction · ages 8–12 · 820L · 1969
A rare, gorgeously illustrated social history for kids—Tunis shows you how people actually dressed, ate, built, and traded in the early republic rather than just marching through presidents and battles.