Archimedes: Ancient Greek Mathematician

Title: Archimedes: Ancient Greek Mathematician
Series: Great Names
Author: Susan Keating
Illustrator: Stefano Tartarotti
Publisher: Mason Crest Publishers
ISBN: 9781590841525

Timothy’s Review (at age 10)

Archimedes was an ancient Greek mathematician. Cool, right? No? 😦 Ah well, can’t please them all… Anyway, back to the review. This story is told from the point of view of a Roman statesman and writer named Cierco. It is written like a diary, and tells of the fabulous life of this amazing man, Archimedes. First off, did you know that “Archimedes” means “Great Thinker”? Surprised? Thought not. Well, he definitely lived up to his expectations. We certainly owe much to this man who, 2,000 years ago, said “Give me a place to stand, and I will move the earth.”.

The Warlord Series

Title: The Warlord’s Fish, The Warlord’s Puppeteers, The Warlord’s Kites, The Warlord’s Messengers, The Warlord’s Alarm
Author: Virginia Walton Pilegard
Illustrator: Nicolas Debon
Series: The Warlord Series
ISBN: 9781565549647, 9781589800779, 9781589801806, 9781589802711, 9781589803787

Timothy’s Review (at age 10)

This is a great series if you’re looking for something that is fun to read and yet informative.  The series is about an artist, his apprentice, a puppeteer and his daughter and their adventures.  In the book “The Warlord’s Fish”, the artist and his apprentice are kidnapped by traders who believe that they have been tricked.  They are taken out into the desert and lose their way, but the apprentice had brought his master’s wooden fish that always pointed south.  With the help of the fish they find their way to the last oasis and are set free.  All of the books are like this, with a crisis happening and the apprentice and/or the puppeteer’s daughter saving the day.  At the end of each book, there is an activity such as how to make a windsock, or how to make your own compass, like in “The Warlord’s Fish”.  This is my favorite math and science series. I really enjoyed it, and I think you will too.

Mummy Angie’s Notes

These books are set in Ancient China.  The Warlord’s Alarm is about the Chinese Water Clock, The Warlord’s Kites about kite making, The Warlord’s Fish about the compass, The Warlord’s Puppeteers about ratios and puppet-making, and The Warlord’s Messengers about wind-driven landcrafts and the windsock.  The series actually starts with two other titles, The Warlord’s Puzzle and The Warlord’s Beads, but for some unknown reason we don’t own them.