My biggest regret after reading this intriguing book of Fantastic Stories for Curious Kids is that I’ll never know the magical wonder of coming to it as a child. Robert Young’s invitation to his young (get it?) readers is enticing: Explore Incredible and Bizarre Tales from History, Science, and the Amazing World Around Us! The stories also prove to be engaging for any adult readers who might have wandered in. However, consider your reaction to the following sentence if you were somewhere between 7 and 12 years old:
“In a faraway land called Thailand, something amazing happens every day. Elephants, the gentle giants of the jungle, have learned to paint pictures!”
My own response was schizophrenic. The adult in me said, “Oh yes, I know. That’s pretty cool.” The remnant of the child in me imagined an entire artist colony of elephants attired in splotchy-colored aprons twiddling their paint brushes pensively in the air while pondering the finer details of their wondrous creations. That kind of detailed and vivid visualization inspires young folks to pursue their history, science, and world studies far into the future.
The delightful pen-and-ink illustrations introducing each beguiling chapter are equally inspiring, although they are not attributed, and one assumes the author must also have created them. More sneakily, Mr. Young includes brief summarizations and takeaways that youngsters can use to understand their lives better. What could be better for young minds than to blend such wonderment and amazement with real-world applications? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
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