Accidental Archaeologists by Sarah Albee, illustrated by Nathan Hackett

   I am a big fan of Sarah Albee's histories of everyday items for kids. Some of her earlier work was criticized for a Western-centric focus, but in this latest work she shows just what she can do with enough scope and access to current research.

After a quick introduction to the basic ideas and terms of archaeology, she jumps into the good part - the stories. These include those students might be familiar with, like the teens who discovered the cave paintings at Lascaux and Otzi the iceman, but also much, much more. Albee looks at papyri discovered in crocodile mummies in 1899, coins in Australia in 1940, and a gold Buddha in Thailand in 1955. Artifacts are uncovered under a street in Mexico city, in a parking lot in Britain, and in a field in China. Albee ends the stories with speculation on an archaeological discovery not yet made - the grave of Genghis Khan.

These are more than just stories of interesting finds though. Each one changed the way we see human history and continues to affect our ideas today. Albee explores the context of the discovery, talking about the early stages of "archeology" when European colonists looted Egyptian monuments, the whitewashed existence of Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous cowboys, and the history of slavery in the North before and during the American Revolution. She points out the troubled history of many of the artifacts we see in museums and modern, ethical rules of how archeologists find and study burial grounds and ancient cultures, especially those with modern descendants. Readers will learn an array of historical and scientific facts as they follow along on this journey of discovery.

The book is decorated with line drawings from Hackett, text is interspersed with black and white photographs, and enlivened with Albee's humor.

Verdict: Albee's work gets better with every new book and this combines the best of narrative, browsing, and traditional nonfiction for an intriguing look at history and archaeology. Pair with Digging Deep by Scandiffio to expand the scientific aspect of archaeology and recommend to kids and adults for pleasure reading as well as to spark discussions on history, research, and culture.

ISBN: 9781338575781; Published 2020 by Scholastic; Purchased for the library