The Lost City of Atlantis. (Crabtree Chrome). Natalie Hyde. St. Catharines, ON: Crabtree, 2016. 48 pp., pbk., hc., & html, $11.95 (pbk.),$26.95 (List RLB), $21.56 (School RLB). ISBN 978-0-7787-2237-3 (pbk.), ISBN 978-0-7787-2298-4 (RLB), ISBN 978-1-4271-8091-9 (html). Subject Heading: Atlantis (Legendary place)-Juvenile literature. Grades 3-6 / Ages 8-11. Review by Tanya Boudreau. **** /4

excerpt:

Atlantis was an island paradise said to have existed more than 11,000 years ago. It had high mountains, streams, and forests full of different animals. It also had plains with rich soil, so people could grow crops all year round. Valuable metals, such as gold and silver, were found in the ground.

The island of Atlantis was divided into 10 kingdoms. Each kingdom had its own main city and was ruled by a powerful king. The island’s great capital city was built on a hill and contained beautiful buildings and structures.

Skeptics and believers will be thrilled to read The Lost City of Atlantis, one of the many books in the “Crabtree Chrome” series, because Hyde presents information which supports both sides of this mysterious three-ringed city. The book begins and ends with scientists who believe they have found Atlantis, with the majority of the 48 page book being devoted to the city’s origins, descriptions of its citizens (Poseidon, farmers, artists) and infrastructure (bathhouses, fountains, canals) and how its story may or may not have been told by philosophers over the years. Whether the city existed or not, the book brings to life a magical place which was destroyed in a mysterious way. Was it a natural disaster or angry gods that caused its demise in the ocean? And where are the remains today? Based on artifacts and unusual groupings of rocks, places that are mentioned in the book include the island of Crete, the coast of Spain, and Morocco. For those who don’t believe a city can just disappear, the author includes facts about the demise of Pompeii and Crete. The book ends with a chapter entitled “Atlantis Today” which describes how the sunken city is being kept alive today in comics, movies, and aquariums and how sonar technology may help find Atlantis, wherever it may be, under the ocean. A bibliography of books and websites is listed in the back material of the book, as well as a glossary of over twenty words that are defined in the book, and an index which includes the page numbers for the numerous photographs and paintings that appear throughout the book. The Lost City of Atlantis is educational and interesting!

Highly Recommended.

Tanya Boudreau is a librarian at the Cold Lake Public Library in Cold Lake, AB.

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

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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