The boys' book How to be the best at everything

Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 4-7-Both of these titles are filled with fun tidbits and suggestions for "beating the rest" at myriad interesting things. They are certain to be popular with readers who have plenty of free time and an adventurous spirit. Examples of more than 150 combined skills ranging from benign (making bubble bath) to outrageous (ripping a phone book in half) to outrageously exaggerated (how to survive in outer space/how to cope if zombies attack). The titles open with disclaimers disavowing any responsibility for accidents or injuries incurred from acting on the information contained within-these texts must be used with heavy doses of common sense. The boys' text contains the more outlandish tips-"Fight off a crocodile." "Escape quicksand." In Girls, the suggestions are more sedentary: "Give yourself a perfect manicure." "Knit with your fingers." "Grow a crystal." But if taken in the spirit of fun, many readers will enjoy the experiences while those with an underdeveloped sense of irony might be better off skipping certain entries.-Elaine Baran Black, Georgia Public Library Service, Atlanta (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Review by Horn Book Review

(Intermediate) From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

Riding along in the slipstream of Conn and Hal Iggulden's The Dangerous Book for Boys (May 2007) comes this similar gathering of advice and activities--revised and expanded from a British handbook (2004) and aimed at a somewhat younger (or less capable) audience. Entries vary randomly in direct usefulness from step-by-step directions for three knots (plus tying a necktie) to living on the Space Station, and in hazard level from techniques for annoying siblings to surviving attacks from bears and crocodiles. The occasional small line drawings are usually helpful, or at least decorative. Though better suited for casual browsing than serious instruction, this will be worth picking up for all those lads (or lasses, though there is a companion volume for girls) eager to learn how to, for instance, throw a lasso, make a balloon dog or hypnotize a chicken. (Nonfiction. 9-11) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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