Customer Reviews

Smart About the Presidents (Smart About History)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My 7 yr old daughter is in 1st grade. She got this book after she had already learned the names of the presidents in order, along w/several facts (some trivial) about each. Still she poured over it to compare what she had studied w/what the book said. The small size, paperback nature, reading level, & casual drawings (like an elementary class project) make it VERY KID FRIENDLY. I understand that some adults might disagree w/which key details of each presidency were included or excluded, & that some info might be too simplified. I think the point is to understand the target audience for this book is elementary school children who will have a chance to study/grasp more in depth material later. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND it for the right audience.

This book is not meant to provide "balance" on each president, rather it is a wonderful introduction to each president and meant to appeal to a very, very young audience. I don't think the Watergate scandal would interest most preschoolers. My daughter (age 4) has been able to memorize all of the presidents thanks to this wonderful and very nicely illustrated book. It is a fabulous book and would highly recommend it to parents with young children.

This book is excellent! I recommend it very highly. It turned my 6 year old cousin into a presidential wiz kid. You can ask him anything from the book and he knows it. It's presented perfectly for a young child. I am a teacher and use this book in my classroom as well.

I first saw this at a book fair at my child's school [...] I should have read it more carefully before purchasing. In all fairness, it is a good introduction to all the presidents and has some interesting facts.

Now, here are the problems I have with this book.

First: Under the description of Richard Nixon, there is no mention of China, the END of the Vietnam war and the END of the draft. Instead, the authors chose to speak ONLY about the Watergate scandal. There was much more to the Nixon Presidency than just Watergate. If they are going to speak about the negative, at least mention some of the positives to show a little balance.

Second: Under the description of Bill Clinton, the book states that "[t]he 1990s were good years for the country - fewer people were out of work and the U.S. was not at war." HELLO! Do the authors not remember Kosovo, the situation in Somalia (i.e. Black Hawk Down), the first bombing of the world trade center, the situation in Haiti, constant activity in the Persian Gulf, planes being shot at in the no fly zone over Iraq, the Oklahoma city bombing, the U.S. bombing of an asprin factory in Africa, the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole, multiple U.S. embassy bombings, etc? While these were not full-blown wars (of which we have not technically had since WWII - only Congress declares war) they are still significant military endeavors and the infancy of the "War on Terror" that began post 9/11. The Clinton Administration deployed our soldiers more times than any other President, albeit the majority of these actions were "peacekeeping missions." Additionally, the nation's unemployment reached its lows in 1997 through the latter end of 2001. After 9/11, we saw unemployment hit 6.4% in June of 2003, but has since returned to a level of 5.4%, which is where we were from 1994 through early 1997 (This information can be verified at the bureau of labor website: http://www.bls.gov/schedule/archives/empsit_nr.htm#1994). So the point that I am making is that the authors paint a picture that everyone had a job and the whole world was holding hands during the 1990's, which simply is not true. I'm not going to touch (no pun intended) the Lewinsky affair - it is mentioned.

Third (And Final): Under the description of George W. Bush, the authors write that the 2000 election was close, Bush did not win the popular vote and "[t]he U.S. Supreme Court finally decided four weeks after the election that bush was the winner." Again, a myth is being perpetuated. Based on the Constitution, the ELECTORAL COLLEGE decides who is president. However, as it is mentioned under the section on John Quincy Adams, if there is a tie, then CONGRESS votes and decides the outcome. No where, no how did the Supreme Court of the United States `decide' the election. They simply put an end to that ridiculous circus of a recount going on in Florida, of which we found out in March of 2001 that Bush did indeed win Florida, thereby receiving the winning number of ELECTORAL votes required to win. Maybe a section should have been added to the book to describe the electoral process.

I am still debating whether or not to give this as a Christmas present. Maybe I can justify it by recommending that my child become "Smart About the Presidents" by doing independent research to find all the errors and omissions in this book.

My first graders love learning interesting facts and historical tidbits about the presidents.

My child was loaned this book in school and loved it so much she wanted her own copy. When I went to order it, both the cover and the publish date were of concern to me--her school copy contained information on Barack Obama and included him on the cover. I took a chance and low and behold, we received the updated book!

I ordered this for my 1st grade daughter. Since her school doesn't focus on History or science until 3rd grade we've been working on some of this at home. She loved all the trivia information and even took it with her on a recent car trip. This book keeps her busy for quite a long while.

I would recommend this to anyone who wants to supplement their childs current education or homeschoolers. It's written in a fun and easy to read format. The illustrations made my daughter giggle quite a bit and held her attention. Great book!

I was so impressed with this little book that I bought four of them - one for each of my three daughter's children and one for myself. It is easy to read and is very educational regarding each of our presidents. For a child, the pictures and illustrations are wonderful.

I am 43 and I found this book very good for me. It told me about the presidents. It told me that Bill Clinton is a good man. It told me that George W Bush is a bad man. It told me that Jon Buller is a smart man who knows on which side of his butter his bread is attached. I am a pinhead. I like simple books like this. And I agree with everything it has to say about George Washington and Clinton's cigar and full employment and family values and not telling lies. As I said, I am a pinhead, I am 43, and I found this book very good for me. Try it out on your kids, and they can become pinheads too.