Gary Drevitch
HarperCollins (2008)
ISBN 9780060899912
Reviewed by Avery Largent (age 9) for Reader Views (9/08)
“Presidents FYI” by Gary Drevitch is an exciting, interesting book that gives you amazing, one-hundred-percent true facts on all the presidents America has had yet. The author’s informative style keeps you completely engrossed in the story, and when you finish it, has you itching for more.
At the first glance, it may look like a schoolbook some kids would be reluctant to read, but when you open up the book and read the first page, you will be compelled to keep going. It keeps you consumed by giving you a bunch of facts about each president, instead of telling you only one or two facts then moving on the next president. The facts fit together so well, and the writing is excellent throughout the book. Besides the rousing writing the author uses, the layout of the book makes the information easily accessible. There is a picture of every single president, something he did, and a spot in the corner of a page that looks like spiral-bound paper with something special about that president or his time. The bright, colorful pages keep it from seeming like a textbook.
Gary Drevitch’s fact-filled style is one of my favorites. For people who love learning new facts all the time, this book would be perfect. There isn’t one sentence without one fact in it. I learned a lot from this and loved every bit of it. I had originally known the basic facts of presidential history, like that Lincoln was the one who had helped end slavery, and things like that, but not all these facts! It actually mentioned how tall or small or heavy or light each president was. I learned that James Madison was only five-foot-four and around 100 pounds, and that he was nicknamed “Great Little Madison.” After, and during, reading this book, if someone said some offhand thing about George Washington, I would be unable to contain myself from blurting out a fact about him. And, even if it seems like it would mention only the presidents in this book, it also mentions their staff, what was going on at the time, and even their wives and children!
“Presidents FYI” by Gary Drevitch is a rapt, informative book full of facts. It is a great book for kids over age seven. I would recommend it to my friends with a smile. I can’t wait to reread this one, and hope Gary Drevitch writes more books.
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