Kid Konnection: Our Country's Presidents

Every Saturday, I host a feature called Kid Konnection -- a regular weekend feature about anything related to children's books. This week I'm going to share with you another terrific book that's especially pertinent as we recently inaugurated our 45th United States President.

Summary: National Geographic presents the 44 individuals who have led the U.S.—plus America's newest commander-in-chief—in this up-to-date, authoritative, and lavishly illustrated family, school, and library reference. It features comprehensive profiles of the 44 former presidents along with timelines and descriptions of crucial events during their terms. Information about the 2016 president-elect is also included.

Thematic spreads cover a variety of topics from the history of voting rights to writing a presidential letter. Full-page portraits, famous quotes, and fascinating facts help kids get to know each leader. This new volume is a fascinating read and excellent reference for students and kids of all ages. -- National Geographic

Yesterday, Donald J. Trump was sworn in as President of the United States yesterday as millions were watching. Whether you are happy or terrified about these events, you still have to admit that we are pretty darn lucky to be Americans where our transfer of power is a peaceful one. It's been a crazy few months with some truly unbelievable news stories; and for many children, including my twelve year old, this is the first time that he was introduced to the world of politics and the presidency.

And that's why the recently released National Geographic book, OUR COUNTRY'S PRESIDENTS: A COMPLETE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE U.S. PRESIDENCY written by Ann Bausum, is so timely. This book is aimed at kids ten years old and up, and it's truly a special book. It's hardcover and oversized; and with almost 225 pages, it's full of information on all of our presidents, both past and current. It even includes information about the 2016 election. When it arrived a few days ago, my son was thrilled... and for a relatively reluctant reader, I think that's really saying something!

OUR COUNTRY'S PRESIDENTS obviously provides information about all of our 45 presidents. It is arranged chronologically, but it divided into sections based on what as going on in our country. For example, the first section is titled, "The Presidency and How it Grew" and the last section is called, "Footprints on the Global Frontier." The book also begins with a copy of Trump's victory speech as well as an introduction about the office of the presidency. There are also instructions about how to use the book including information on the timelines, profiles, presidential portraits, fact boxes, thematic spreads, and reference aids.

Naturally, the book explores the life and times of the presidents; and I'm sure there are quite a few children's books out there that do this. However, OUR COUNTRY'S PRESIDENTS is super special because of how it's arranged. There are lots of words providing information, but there are also so many other graphics and colorful photographs to make it interesting. There are some famous quotations in boxes, boxes with quick fun facts about each president, and more. I think kids can use this book as reference material or read it straight though -- maybe a chapter a day on each president.

I've reviewed enough National Geographic books over the past few years that it's probably redundant for me to say that the photographs in OUR COUNTRY'S PRESIDENTS are wonderful. There are gorgeous color photos from more recent presidents and great drawings/paintings from earlier ones. There truly are hundreds of interesting pictures to look at... and learn from in this book.

OUR COUNTRY'S PRESIDENTS is a terrific resource for school, classroom and home libraries. As far as I'm concerned, it's a must-read book for all kids who are interested in U.S. history and especially the lives of our country's leaders.

Thanks to Media Masters Publicity for providing a review copy of this book.

If you'd like to participate in Kid Konnection and share a post about anything related to children's books (picture, middle grade, or young adult) from the past week, please leave a comment as well as a link below with your name/blog name and the title of the book! Feel free to grab the little button too!