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DK Eyewitness Books
Explorer
How did the earliest sailors navigate? Who crossed the Australian continent first? What did the Egyptians find in the "Land of the Gods"? DK Eyewitness Explorer takes a look at the worlds of Amelia Earhart, Jacques Cousteau, Marco Polo and other famous explorers, sharing real-life photographs of their equipment and personal possessions, as well as objects they found. Readers will see arrows shot into Livingstone's boat, Spanish conquistadors gold, and insect specimens brought back by naturalist explorers and gain an understanding of the extraordinary explorations that helped shape our world today. The most trusted nonfiction series on the market, Eyewitness Books provide an in-depth, comprehensive look at their subjects with a unique integration of words and pictures. The story of exploration — from early expeditions to high-tech trips into space — is presented in vivid visual detail in this intriguing guide.
72 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 23, 2020
Another good DK eyewitness book. Younger children can look at the pictures and older children can use the information for school projects.
March 14, 2019
OK I know these are supposed to be kid books but they are awesome! Great pictures and just enough text to make you want to learn more. Great choices for a beginning history reader or to start an older reader out in a new area. Every time I pick one of these up and read it I learn new things. Highly Recommended
September 1, 2024
Am not only trying to move some books from my "TBR" to my "read" bookshelf, but also move some off my "reference list as well, since at least in my case, a "reference" book usually means one I buy and put on my shelf, but then probably never actually "refer" to again. And so am starting here, with one of the original "DK Eyewitness" books, bought when it first came out in 1991 — and which has been sitting on my shelf ever since. So…
Nice overall summary from the early Phoenicians up through (an admittedly brief coverage of) current day space and deep sea exploration. As I've been a follower of various explorers since I was a kid, there wasn't a lot of new information for me here; but like so many other books in this series, the real joy comes from taking a virtual stroll through what amounts to a well-curated museum, and enjoying the wealth or artifacts on display here — tools, weapons, models, maps, survival gear, etc., etc. And of course, I always enjoy shout-outs to "my boyz" like Wallace, Shackleton, Burton, Humboldt, et al.
Coupla quick things: I spent a fair amount of time on the two-page spread discussing navigation and the various techniques and tools — astrolabes, sextants, back staffs, cross-staffs — and I didn't understand ANY of it; I'm amazed people back then were smart enough to figure this all out and actually ever get ANYWHERE, (and in hindsight, am equally amazed I personally actually ever got through Dava Sobel's excellent — if similarly confusing — Illustrated Longitude - True Story Of A Lone Genius Who Solved The Greatest Scientific Problem Of His Time).
And finally: I continue to be similarly amazed (but in the worst possible way) at the horrific ways in which one group of human beings could treat another; in this cases, the Spanish treatment of the Aztec, Mayan and Incan peoples of South America…and in the name of God, no less. Jesus, people…I mean, literally: Jesus, people. As in, like, READ his WORDS.
Nice overall summary from the early Phoenicians up through (an admittedly brief coverage of) current day space and deep sea exploration. As I've been a follower of various explorers since I was a kid, there wasn't a lot of new information for me here; but like so many other books in this series, the real joy comes from taking a virtual stroll through what amounts to a well-curated museum, and enjoying the wealth or artifacts on display here — tools, weapons, models, maps, survival gear, etc., etc. And of course, I always enjoy shout-outs to "my boyz" like Wallace, Shackleton, Burton, Humboldt, et al.
Coupla quick things: I spent a fair amount of time on the two-page spread discussing navigation and the various techniques and tools — astrolabes, sextants, back staffs, cross-staffs — and I didn't understand ANY of it; I'm amazed people back then were smart enough to figure this all out and actually ever get ANYWHERE, (and in hindsight, am equally amazed I personally actually ever got through Dava Sobel's excellent — if similarly confusing — Illustrated Longitude - True Story Of A Lone Genius Who Solved The Greatest Scientific Problem Of His Time).
And finally: I continue to be similarly amazed (but in the worst possible way) at the horrific ways in which one group of human beings could treat another; in this cases, the Spanish treatment of the Aztec, Mayan and Incan peoples of South America…and in the name of God, no less. Jesus, people…I mean, literally: Jesus, people. As in, like, READ his WORDS.
May 2, 2019
This Dorling-Kindersley Eyewitness Book looks at explorers, from the earliest days of man’s exploration to the deep sea and space explorers of today. Young readers discover Phoenicians, Egyptians, Vikings, the Age of Exploration, the New World, Australia, the Northwest Passage, the North and South poles, Pioneers of the Air, and more. Lavish, full-color illustrations, drawings, and photographs accompany the narrative. This introduction to the exploration of our world and beyond is perfect for readers interested in social studies, early civilizations, and exploration.
Recommended.
Recommended.
February 19, 2018
Excellent overview. Recommended to anyone over mid elementary school interested in quick factoids about explorers in history. I used this to build a list of explorers I wanted to examine more closely this year.
April 22, 2021
I have always loved the Eyewitness books. I remember loving them as a kid and not being able to get enough of them! While this one is not my favorite, it is still very interesting with an abundance of cool facts and tidbits.
March 14, 2014
This is one of the DK Eyewitness books, a series of non-fiction, informational books that put everything you want to know about a subject in one spot. Overall the series is excellent and I have yet to see one that does not deliver vivid photos, art, and drawing combined with descriptive text. A child could spend many days reading this if they read the descriptions under each photo, or a few hours if they stick to the main text. In this book they delve into explorers of many different cultures from Eygpt, to Arabians, to space explorers. This is not an explorer book that takes the few well known names from European history and just talks about how they 'discovered' America(though they have photos and captions in there too). I love the sections in the back about fun facts, the timeline, and glossary.
This entire series has a lot of use for the classroom; though the reading level on this one seemed a little harder than others I have read. I think its perfect for report writing in fourth and fifth grade. It's a wonderful source to cite. I also can see this book as being a great jig-saw project for a group where each person took one page (there's a different topic for each double page opening), fleshed it out with internet research, then came back to the group to be the expert in that topic for a group presentation on Explorers. Another aspect to consider for this book series is how well made these books are; the hard cover is bound very well and it can take some abuse.
This entire series has a lot of use for the classroom; though the reading level on this one seemed a little harder than others I have read. I think its perfect for report writing in fourth and fifth grade. It's a wonderful source to cite. I also can see this book as being a great jig-saw project for a group where each person took one page (there's a different topic for each double page opening), fleshed it out with internet research, then came back to the group to be the expert in that topic for a group presentation on Explorers. Another aspect to consider for this book series is how well made these books are; the hard cover is bound very well and it can take some abuse.
March 8, 2013
Audience: ages 8-12 for larger, multisyllabic words and smaller typefont; adventurers, travelers, inventor kids or kids interested in inventions, history-buffs
Appeal: The book comes with a CD with clip art on it, that's pretty interesting for techie kids. The graphics are very interactive and the layout is educational and engaging at the same time. DK, in general, makes great reference materials (and not just for children).
Application: I would use portions of this book in the classroom to help give context to a piece of history we're learning about. And it's also a great book to help widen the vocabulary; the complexity of the sentences when read aloud would help readers with flow and pronunciations of various geographical places and inventions we don't use anymore.
Appeal: The book comes with a CD with clip art on it, that's pretty interesting for techie kids. The graphics are very interactive and the layout is educational and engaging at the same time. DK, in general, makes great reference materials (and not just for children).
Application: I would use portions of this book in the classroom to help give context to a piece of history we're learning about. And it's also a great book to help widen the vocabulary; the complexity of the sentences when read aloud would help readers with flow and pronunciations of various geographical places and inventions we don't use anymore.
April 20, 2012
This is an interesting book that talks about many different types of explorers from different times in history. It gives many interesting examples of things discovered while exploring. This would be a good book for students to read when studying various expeditions and explorations throughout history. The book also uses large colorful pictures that are very engaging for students to look at while reading the captions below.
October 14, 2014
As a future educator, i hope to have lots of book like this one in my classroom. It has so much information yet it is done in an entertaining and simple way that young children who can read could understand and enjoy. I made a lesson plan just off of two pages, with lots of information and even a small activity form the different elements it presents. I am glad there are ways to get children to read social studies without them feeling like it is boring.
October 22, 2012
This book is a good source of information and photographs pertaining to explorations. Ths book contains exciting historical accounts ranging from the early explorers, the Silk Road and sea explorations to modern day space explorations.It also mentions naviagation equipment and technological advancements. I would use this book for integrated lesson plans.
October 14, 2010
It was the best eywitnes book I have read. I think I should read more eywitnes over this year. I think the best part was about Columbas.
April 6, 2015
eye witness Explorer
Matthews, Rupert *
a great resource on images and brief explanations about explorers around the world.
Matthews, Rupert *
a great resource on images and brief explanations about explorers around the world.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews