Customer Reviews

DK Children's Illustrated Encyclopedia

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It was with some trepidation that I opened The Oxford Children's Illustrated Encyclopaedia, being it is a product of acedemia. I need not have worried. It is refreshing and is crammed with facts; and without being jingoistic, it cheerfully assumes it is not a bad thing to view the world through Western eyes. That is, it speaks from a largely Western perspective.

Chinese history gets its due, for instance, but mainly as it intersects with European; the same goes for Africa.

It is also notable that the encyclopaedia explains herbalism, reflexology and aromatherapy in a one-page article on complementary medicine, for instance, but devotes pages and pages to standard science: bacteria, viruses, breathing, cells, the brain, the heart, immunity, pregnancy, birth and so on. The "wisdom of the rainforest" is absent. So is the group theory of scientific discovery, in favour of the accomplishments of such individuals as Archimedes, Marie Curie, James Watt and Albert Einstein.

Pollution and its effects are discussed, but without any technology-bashing. The entries on the steam engine, crane, battery and photocopier (bet you didn't know that the key to photocopying is magnetism) are more than clear; they impart to children that each is a triumph of the human mind.

Its accurate chronology and historical structure for example include Medieval England with exposition of king, law, parliament, God and the Black Death. Then there is the matter of religion. Its pages on Buddhism, Islam and Judaism provide excellent synopses, and the entries on Christianity are packed with information. Space was found for Methodism founder John Wesley, the Quakers' George Fox and many more.

In summary, it is accurate, factual but more important it presents things in perspective.

Nathan Greenfield [BCR]

This is a great buy for $6 inclusive of shipping and handling. It is a nice book to have on the bookshelf for your child to page through on a rainy Saturday afternoon. Still, it lacks the entertainment value of the DK Eye Wonder and Eye Witness Books.