Horn Book Review
The stiffly written books in this series investigate the crafts, clothing, festivals, and holidays of a specific historical time, but attempt to cover too much ground too briefly. Captioned photos of archaeological sites and artifacts are eye-catching, but the layout is often cluttered and confusing. Three to five activities offer suggestions for creating period clothing and crafts. Bib., glos., ind. [Review covers these Clothes and Crafts in History titles: [cf2]Clothes and Crafts in Aztec, Clothes and Crafts in the Middle Ages, Clothes and Crafts in Roman Times[cf1].] (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Gr. 4^-6. Highly illustrated with reproductions of period artworks and photos of sites and artifacts, the Clothes and Crafts in History series offers an overview of life in a particular culture, emphasizing crafts, clothing, and festivals. Each book begins with a map and a little basic history, then discusses the materials available and how craftsmen used them to create useful, beautiful things. Middle Ages ends with a section showing children how to make medieval kirtles, tunics, jewelry, a pilgrim's badge, and an illuminated manuscript. In Roman Times, children will learn how to make a dolphin broach, a mosaic, a wreath of oak leaves, an actor's mask, and small clay statues. Though the topics and time periods are too large for such short books, the texts are fairly good, and the illustrations are quite good. Other titles in this series are listed in the Series Roundup in this issue. --Carolyn Phelan