Science vs. Disease

Gr 3–5—Bland truisms and vague sentences run rampant in this series. Enormous color photos (with captions in very small type, awkwardly placed in variously colored boxes) and side boxes dominate each spread, with very little text on each topic. The information that does exist leaves out details that would bring the text to life-Animal Extinction mentions that DDT harmed songbirds, which caused it to be banned, but doesn't say how, nor does it explain how it affects the whales found to have it in their system. Disease talks about prosthetics that are connected to the nervous system and controlled by thought; two paragraphs later, it says, "Scientists also hope they will one day be able to create robotic limbs that connect directly to the body's nervous system…." On a positive note, the side boxes do provide more detail on certain points, such as major breakthroughs and controversial issues, but there are not enough of them. Each volume has decent end materials-the time line puts the scientists' work into perspective over time using examples from the text, and the glossary and index are fairly robust. Climate Change is the strongest volume, as it addresses climate-change denial and the thinking behind it, and mentions the United States's mixed track record on pollution (including the rejection of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol). This volume is worth a look; the rest of the information can be found elsewhere.—Rebecca Dash Donsky, New York Public Library