Navigation History and How-To for Middle Grades

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Do you have a good sense of direction or are you one of those people who always gets lost? I tend to have a pretty good sense of direction. When I do get lost I can usually call my husband and he will pull out a map and find where I am and how to get where I want to be or use my GPS. Steve loves maps. When we were first married he would drive me crazy. I would print out directions when we were going somewhere but instead of reading me the directions he would try to tell me the directions from the map. Unfortunately he is not as quick as needed in the map reading when I'm driving. Because of Steve's love of maps, Hazel became interested in maps at a young age. Of course there are places that are not mapped out like the forest. What happens when you get lost there? Today's book is a book to give the reader skills to not get lost or at least know how to find one's way and what tools one might need when exploring. The book is How to Go Anywhere (and Not Get Lost) by Hans Aschim and illustrated by Andres Lozano.

From the Publisher:

Born to explore

Get outside with this interactive book that shows how explorers have found their way around the planet for thousands of years. Read about the ancient Polynesians who tracked the stars and waves to sail precise paths through the ocean. Or the Age of European Exploration navigators who use compasses and dead reckoning to reach the New World. And learn the science behind radar and modern-day GPS satellites. Then discover how to do it yourself! With illustrated activities as well as handy tips throughout, you’ll learn the fascinating history and seriously useful skills to become a true navigator.
Up your adventure game and learn to:
—Find north and south by reading the trees
—Make a simple compass
—Use the stars to tell time
—Build a basic sextant
—Get your bearings using the sun
—Go treasure hunting with GPS

From Me:

This book has history, geography, math and science in it. Talk about educational. However it is also full of fun. The book is recommended for ages 9 to 12 and covers the early movement of the first people on Earth to GPS. Throughout the book are different activities to learn more as well as explanations on how to use various navigational tools like a compass and more. It explains concepts like latitude and longitude as well as gives instructions to make one's own navigational tools. And it does all of this in a fun way with humor throughout it. 

The information in this book is wonderfully presented for kids to understand and it goes through so many basic life skills like determining direction, reading a map, finding distance, and so much more! I love how it puts it all in language a 9-year-old can understand and the tone of the entire book that will draw kids in. I also love the different activities to help the reader understand the concepts and tools discussed throughout the book. There are seventeen different activities. But besides all the science it goes into the history of navigation and the navigational tools. It tells the reader who made the first chronometer and tells a bit about Christopher Columbus, Galileo and more. Of course one of the stories near and dear to my heart is the first wireless trans-Atlantic communication since we have visited the site in South Wellfleet that Guglielmo Marconi sent one of the first messages a few times. And the story of it all is in the book.

I love the various information in this book and how it covers everything about navigation--history through how to use tools. I love that it is presented in a fun and easy manner and that it is interesting to read. This is one of those books that are great for summer explorations as well as studying navigation in school. I hope you will check it out.