NONFICTION

Hackers

by Tom Jackson (text) & illus. by Christina Guitian
QEB. (What’s the Issue?). Oct. 2019. 96p. pap. $14.95. ISBN 9780711244580.
COPY ISBN
Gr 6-8–Jackson has compiled a thorough history of computer technology and the Internet. The book starts with a very interesting history of secret codes and those who hacked them, then takes readers all the way to CRISPR and gene hacking, incorporating a brief discussion of ethics and how they apply. The author did a good job of taking a huge amount of high-level information and simplifying it for student comprehension. The illustrations are odd at times but mostly representative of the text on a particular double-page spread. As in most middle grade nonfiction books, double-page spreads have titles with the text grouped in short paragraphs denoted by subtitles. Young American readers might be confused by the usage of British terminology and spelling.
VERDICT The information is certainly relevant and timely, but few middle grade readers will have the attention span and patience to sit down and read the book cover to cover.
Reviewed by Kim Gardner, Fort Worth Country Day School, TX , Oct 01, 2019

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