CM Magazine: How Much Does Your Head Weigh? The Big Fat Book of Facts.

________________ CM . . . . Volume XVII Number 7. . . .October 15, 2010.

cover
How Much Does Your Head Weigh? The Big Fat Book of Facts.

Marg Meikle. Illustrated by Tina Holdcroft.
Toronto, ON: Scholastic Canada, 2010.
424 pp., pbk., $12.99.
ISBN 978-1-4431-0047-2.

Subject Heading:
Questions and answers.

Grades 4-7 / Ages 9-12.

Review by Betsy Fraser.

***½/4

excerpt:

Why does poison ivy itch so much? The oil in the sap of poison ivy, urushiol, puts the “poison” in poison ivy. And get this: you only need a billionth of a gram (a nanogram) to get a rash and itch like mad. Five hundred people could itch from the amount covering the head of a pin. Just over 7 g of urushiol could give every person on Earth a rash.

How Much Does Your Head Weigh? presents 305 facts from Marg Meikle, formerly known as CBC’s “The Answer Lady.” There are several ways in which the book can be read: straight through, as the facts are presented in a numerical order; browsed, as each fact is presented with a question-and-answer format that would encourage a reluctant reader to dip into it; or readers who are interested in specific information may use either the chapter headings or the index to look for subjects from cats to Frank Zamboni. Tina Holdcroft’s whimsical cartoons add an amusing touch to the text on a regular basis.

This is a book that will fill a niche in both school and public libraries where readers enjoy lists. Meikle gives between 1-3 pages to answer each question, not enough to overwhelm a reader but enough to satisfy an information junkie and potentially turn a reader into one. Meikle comes up with a plethora of topics and manages to supplement a number of her answers with sidebars that add additional facts. Interested readers may be drawn to her earlier books, such as Ask Me Anything! Strange But True Answers to 99 Wacky Questions.

Highly Recommended.

Betsy Fraser is the Community Outreach Librarian at Calgary Public Library’s Crowfoot Branch.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364 Hosted by the University of Manitoba.

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