Editorial Review

The History of Pets series offers a fresh take on a perennially popular topic while introducing beginning readers to basic nonfiction-text features. Brief chapters use simple declarative sentences reinforced by labeled or captioned photos and data models, including charts and maps. All text passages appear in highlighted blocks of color, and occasional prompts (“Did you know?” “What do you think?”) encourage moments of self-reflection and quick checks for understanding. Vocabulary words appear in bold font and are defined in a glossary. Birds reveals that these feathered animals have been kept as pets for over 1,000 years in China, where people often take their parakeets out for walks. Dogs reports that European kings and queens used to love their tiny pups so much that they had special pockets sewn into their clothes so they could carry them around. According to Fish, Ancient Romans used to keep saltwater fish as pets—and one such inchthyophile even designed special jewelry for his favorite moray eel. In Lizards, readers will learn that these animals live on every continent except Antarctica and are often smuggled from on country to another to be bred as exotic pets. The eye-catching covers and accessible content make this series equally effective for building literacy skills, small-group instruction, or independent reading.