Spartans (History's Fearless Fighters)

Rupert Matthews, is an experienced writer and editor of children's books, and specializes in works on history.

Gr 5-8-An appealing layout enlivens this set about famous warriors, which covers origins, history, and feats of the warrior classes. The visuals, which include high-quality photos of locations, modern-day people in historical garb, weapons, and artifacts, as well as maps and illustrations of tactics and famous battle maneuvers, greatly enhance the standard text material. Books share some common features, such as "That's Fearless!" sidebars that describe feats of bravery (or foolhardiness) and "Focus On" pages that add information about famous warriors, battles or tactics, and equipment, but formats vary slightly to allow for more flexible coverage of topics and explain each warrior group's purpose, organization, and legacy. VERDICT The strong visual appeal will draw report writers and general reading audiences, even in the crowded field of extant sets on warriors, making them good additional choices.α(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.