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Enchantment of the World
Poland
Learn about the country's history, culture, people and much more!
After suffering through World War II, the nation of Poland faced several decades of difficulties. Today, however, it is a country in the midst of transition, with a bright future ahead of it. Readers will get a close-up look at Poland as they learn about its incredible history and immerse themselves in its rich cultural heritage. They will also learn about the country's modern government and get a taste of its incredible natural beauty.
After suffering through World War II, the nation of Poland faced several decades of difficulties. Today, however, it is a country in the midst of transition, with a bright future ahead of it. Readers will get a close-up look at Poland as they learn about its incredible history and immerse themselves in its rich cultural heritage. They will also learn about the country's modern government and get a taste of its incredible natural beauty.
- GenresNonfictionGeography
144 pages, Library Binding
First published February 1, 2014
10 people want to read
About the author
Wil Mara
262 books61 followersWil Mara has worked as an author for over 34 years and currently has more than 325 books in print. He has written both fiction and nonfiction, for children and adults. His books have won multiple awards, reached bestseller lists, earned excellent reviews, and been translated into more than a dozen languages. 2005’s Wave won the New Jersey Notable Book Award, and 2012’s The Gemini Virus remained on Amazon’s list of ‘Ten Bestseller Medical Thrillers’ for 14 consecutive weeks. The most recent novel in his disaster series, Fallout, was nominated for the Edgar Award for Novel of the Year. And his children’s nonfiction publications have won countless awards and terrific reviews in all the leading trade journals, including Booklist, School Library Journal, Kirkus, and others.
Much of his work for children has been nonfiction for the school-library market. He also ghostwrote five of the popular ‘Boxcar Children’ mysteries. And starting in 2019, Rosen Publishing released the first of his new ‘Twisted’ series, which has been described as “Twilight Zones for kids.” It became the most pre-ordered fiction series in the company’s history. The first ‘Twisted’ book, The Videomaniac, was released on January 1 and sold through its first printing in less than a month. The second, House of a Million Rooms, was released on March 1 and, just a few weeks later, was chosen as a Main Selection Title by the Junior Library Guild.
Wil was also an editor, administrator, and executive inside the industry for over 20 years, working for such houses as Scholastic, McGraw-Hill, Macmillan, and Prentice-Hall until turning to fulltime writing in 2005. He is an associate member of the NJASL and an executive member of the Board of Directors for the New Jersey Center for the Book, which is an affiliate of the US Library of Congress. He is also the vice president of the Literary Alliance of New Jersey, the host of the ‘Voice of American Libraries’ podcast, and the 2019 recipient of the Literary Lion of New Jersey Award, whose past winners include Gus Friedrich, Dean Emeritus of Rutgers University, and Joyce Carol Oates, National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist.
Wil is also an experienced speaker, presenter, and voice artist, having visited more than 300 schools and other institutions, and done the audio readings for many books, including his 2012 thriller The Gemini Virus. He continues to speak to audiences across the country (including via video) and do voice work as his writing schedule permits.
Much of his work for children has been nonfiction for the school-library market. He also ghostwrote five of the popular ‘Boxcar Children’ mysteries. And starting in 2019, Rosen Publishing released the first of his new ‘Twisted’ series, which has been described as “Twilight Zones for kids.” It became the most pre-ordered fiction series in the company’s history. The first ‘Twisted’ book, The Videomaniac, was released on January 1 and sold through its first printing in less than a month. The second, House of a Million Rooms, was released on March 1 and, just a few weeks later, was chosen as a Main Selection Title by the Junior Library Guild.
Wil was also an editor, administrator, and executive inside the industry for over 20 years, working for such houses as Scholastic, McGraw-Hill, Macmillan, and Prentice-Hall until turning to fulltime writing in 2005. He is an associate member of the NJASL and an executive member of the Board of Directors for the New Jersey Center for the Book, which is an affiliate of the US Library of Congress. He is also the vice president of the Literary Alliance of New Jersey, the host of the ‘Voice of American Libraries’ podcast, and the 2019 recipient of the Literary Lion of New Jersey Award, whose past winners include Gus Friedrich, Dean Emeritus of Rutgers University, and Joyce Carol Oates, National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist.
Wil is also an experienced speaker, presenter, and voice artist, having visited more than 300 schools and other institutions, and done the audio readings for many books, including his 2012 thriller The Gemini Virus. He continues to speak to audiences across the country (including via video) and do voice work as his writing schedule permits.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 20, 2022
I really like the "Enchantment of the World" series! Every book is a good colorful introduction for kids (or adults who just want an introduction!) to a particular country.
This particular one was interesting to me due to its acknowledgement that recent Polish history is very intertwined with Catholicism. And the pictures of Polish cities really make me want to go visit.
This particular one was interesting to me due to its acknowledgement that recent Polish history is very intertwined with Catholicism. And the pictures of Polish cities really make me want to go visit.
May 6, 2021
My wife Kristy and I read this book in expectation of a trip to Central and Eastern Europe in 2022. It sounds like Poland is a nice place. This country has been a powerful force at times but has also been dominated by other powers nearby like Russia, Germany, and Austria.
It was the first European country to have a constitution. It has some famous musicians like Chopin and Rubenstein. Marie Curie was the only woman ever to get two Nobel Prizes in her studies of radioactivity. It has good teams in soccer, volleyball, and basketball.
It has sea access on the Baltic Sea. One of its main rivers is the Vistula. The capital is Warsaw but Krakow has a long and proud history for its university and museum.
The people have been tried in the furnace of fire with its subjugation by Hitler and again by the Soviet Union. One patriot was Lech Walesa who helped remove the yoke of Soviet oppression. Another extra famous citizen of Poland is Pope John Paul the II, who served as the first non-Italian pope in over 500 years. About 80% of the Polish citizens claim to be Catholic and that percentage went up when the pope was from Poland.
We hope to visit Poland this next year. Our trip this year was cancelled by the Covid-19 pandemic.
It was the first European country to have a constitution. It has some famous musicians like Chopin and Rubenstein. Marie Curie was the only woman ever to get two Nobel Prizes in her studies of radioactivity. It has good teams in soccer, volleyball, and basketball.
It has sea access on the Baltic Sea. One of its main rivers is the Vistula. The capital is Warsaw but Krakow has a long and proud history for its university and museum.
The people have been tried in the furnace of fire with its subjugation by Hitler and again by the Soviet Union. One patriot was Lech Walesa who helped remove the yoke of Soviet oppression. Another extra famous citizen of Poland is Pope John Paul the II, who served as the first non-Italian pope in over 500 years. About 80% of the Polish citizens claim to be Catholic and that percentage went up when the pope was from Poland.
We hope to visit Poland this next year. Our trip this year was cancelled by the Covid-19 pandemic.
December 18, 2022
Poland had difficult past, poles has an admirable determination. This book is a reminder to the world war destroys lives and peace always wins. I would love to this beautiful country and try their famous Kielbasa! What a fun read!
December 28, 2018
Little on Gdańsk, no mention or photos of Malbork 🤨
February 24, 2020
An easy and interesting read for people who don't read geographic books usually.
September 22, 2019
Clear and concise history of Poland. Great colorful pictures and facts. Includes brief histories on prominent Poles, such as Frederic Chopin (composer), Nicolaus Copernicus (scientist), Marie Curie (Chemist), John Paul II (Pope), Arthur Rubinstein (pianist), and Lech Walesa (Leader of the Solidarity movement and former president). A timeline and fast facts is included in the back of the book. Meant for kids between 5th grade and 8th grade.
June 13, 2016
This is a great book with gorgeous photographs that makes me long for the streets of Warsaw and Kraków. I really would love to visit Wroclaw, Lodz, and Lubin. I absolutely love the architecture.
One way in which I didn't realize Poland was similar to the U.S. was that women put off having children because they do not have guaranteed maternity leave and avoid mentioning wanting a family when they go to interviews. With 1 in 7 Poles being 65 or older, I wonder how their birth rate will be affected in years to come since a lot of Poles decide to have only one child.
I thought the Timeline in the back comparing Polish history to world history was a cool feature to have in the book.
One feature of the book I wasn't fond of (hence the 4 star rating as opposed to 5 stars) is that there were too many instances of whole or half pages being dedicated to a specific topic, that were examples of things discussed in the main narrative, were a distraction and it was challenging at times to read the main text how it was supposed to be read in worry of missing one of the topics put to the side.
I thought it was an excellent choice to start the first chapter with a personal narrative so it was easier to connect to and to realize the facts we're obtaining pertain to real people and their daily lives.
One way in which I didn't realize Poland was similar to the U.S. was that women put off having children because they do not have guaranteed maternity leave and avoid mentioning wanting a family when they go to interviews. With 1 in 7 Poles being 65 or older, I wonder how their birth rate will be affected in years to come since a lot of Poles decide to have only one child.
I thought the Timeline in the back comparing Polish history to world history was a cool feature to have in the book.
One feature of the book I wasn't fond of (hence the 4 star rating as opposed to 5 stars) is that there were too many instances of whole or half pages being dedicated to a specific topic, that were examples of things discussed in the main narrative, were a distraction and it was challenging at times to read the main text how it was supposed to be read in worry of missing one of the topics put to the side.
I thought it was an excellent choice to start the first chapter with a personal narrative so it was easier to connect to and to realize the facts we're obtaining pertain to real people and their daily lives.
September 25, 2014
This book is an interesting overview of Poland. It is packed full of information. It can get boring at times because there is so much information but other than that this was a great book.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews