Wednesday, August 10, 2022

Ultimate food atlas from National Geographic Kids


 This is a review two years in the making... but more on that later.

National Geographic's familiar explosion of photographs, facts, and colorful backgrounds brings to the reader an exploration of food across the world. A guide to the atlas shows readers where to look for different sections, geography, and interesting tidbits, and then the book sets out on a tour of the food of the continents. Starting with North America, readers will see the food grown on farms, explore vegetables and roots, visit colorful and tasty festivals, and find recipes to try out on their own among many other sections. A handful of maps and activities are sprinkled throughout the book, with an answer key at the back.

This would be a handy accompaniment to units on different continents and countries as well as a fun exploration of agriculture and food. It also makes for some tasty browsing and may encourage some picky eaters to expand their menu.

The really interesting thing about this book is that it was published in 2020. I was surprised when I saw that, since I requested a review copy and naturally assumed it was a new book. After a little research (and the belated recollection that my original order was cancelled) I figured out what had happened. When supply chains were hit hard in the early days of the pandemic, many, many publishers delayed publication of their titles. This is just speculation, but my guess is that National Geographic may have had their titles already printed but were unable to distribute them. I know they had some serious warehouse issues at the time. The good news is that now their popular, kid-friendly browsing nonfiction titles are popping up again. The bad news is that, like most librarians, I rarely look at anything that appears to have been published two years ago. So, this is your PSA - take a look at National Geographic's offerings for the last two years and check to make sure you didn't miss anything!

Verdict: This is a fun addition to your browsing nonfiction collections and a timely reminder to make sure you didn't overlook anything during the last few years of disturbed shipping!

ISBN: 9781426338670; Published in 2020; released July 2022 by National Geographic; Review copy provided by publisher

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