My children will attend school for the last day tomorrow. After that, I am on my own for 2 1/2 months. I have three kids who really like to fight with each other, so I have to keep them as busy as humanly possible. I also have to feed them occasional, so we're on a budget. This summer, we are joining our local library's book club. In light of that, let's talk about another great series of books for pre-teens, shall we?
This series of books has successfully made non-fiction cool again. Its artistic and clever weaving of fact and fiction is why it is a must read for kids and parents alike. And any series of tween books that can coin its own phrase, even a made up word like Ology, is good enough for me.
In 2003, a book was published called Dragonology. In 2003, I had a 5 year old. He could read, but only read non-fiction. He was (and still is) obsessed with witches and dragons and magic. He HAD to have this book.
I bought it for him and was completely surprised to find it entertaining. It reads like non-fiction, like a journal almost. It's written from the point of view of a 19th century dragonologist. He loved it. He read it countless times. We both won with this book; he got the indulge in his fantasies, and I got the kid to read some fiction already.
Since that book's release, and its astounding success, more have followed. Every book is just as captivating, just as cleverly written as the next. They appeal to every style of child; they are "Faux Non Fiction" for the brainier set, with a carefully woven tale full of excitement for the more artistic child, and every book has hidden treasures tucked inside, like removable maps or small jewels, which catch the attention of the hands on kids, too.
The second book in the series is Egyptology , and I think this is the book that I definetly derived more from than my kids did. The story is of a woman Egyptologist searching for the tomb of Osiris. It is magically written, and makes this part of our history enchanting for kids.
Next came Wizardology, which is my oldest son's favorite in the series. It is written as though Merlin the Wizard himself is writing the tale. This book is full of ancient "secrets", fantasy and mystery, and is a great compliment to any Harry Potter readers library.
After that came my youngest son's book, Pirateology. This book is the most hands on of the series, in my opinion. It's just a fun, eye-popping tale of Pirate hunting. It's visually stunning and a fun, exciting story to follow.
Mythology was the last release in the series, and delves deep into ancient Greek culture. It covers a bit of language, a bit of geography, and then goes into the timeless myths to have come from ancient Greece. I love this book because it's so relevant to today. Greek mythology is still alive and well around us, and this book brings really teaches as it entertains.
We own every "ology" book (that's actually a term now; you can search it in Amazon, Google and Wikipedia), and will continue to buy them as long as they are published. In August '08, Monsterology is scheduled for release, and then Spyology in October '08, and I imagine I will be beating down the door of the nearest bookstore the days they comes out.
