The Flag Book

by Moira Butterfield

Welcome to the amazing world of flags! Did you know that each flag is actually a picture that sends a message to everyone who sees it? In The Flag Book, Lonely Planet Kids introduces you to the flags of every country in the world, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, and tells you what their design, colors, and images represent, along with lots of other incredible facts. What's the only country that doesn't have a rectangular flag? Why does Hawaii's state flag feature the UK's Union Jack in one corner? And what do the 13 stripes of the USA's Star Spangled Banner represent? You'll find out the answer to all these and much, much more. And then we'll show you the other fascinating ways flags are used throughout the world. Learn the International Code of Flag Symbols to communicate with ships at sea; read about flags used in sports, like Formula 1's checkered flag; marvel at flags commemorating world records and incredible human achievements; and peer with a microscope at the planet's smallest flag, which is no wider than a human hair. Chapters About Lonely Planet Lonely Planet Kids-an imprint of the world's leading travel authority Lonely Planet-published its first book in 2011. Over the past 45 years, Lonely Planet has grown a dedicated global community of travelers, many of whom are now sharing a passion for exploration with their children. Lonely Planet Kids educates and encourages young readers at home and in school to learn about the world with engaging books on culture, sociology, geography, nature, history, space and more. We want to inspire the next generation of global citizens and help kids and their parents to approach life in a way that makes every day an adventure. Come explore!

Genres: Geography, Nonfiction, Education

184 pages, Hardcover

Published September 17, 2019

About the author

I wrote my first book when I was 8 years old. I glued photos of my cats in a blank book and wrote about them, too. Now I am an internationally-published children's author commended by the Library of Congress for my work encouraging children to read.
I write in a room between a deli and an art gallery on a small town street. I can see families walking by, and I can hear children laughing and playing. It helps me to remember what exactly I'm doing this for - creating books for families all over the world to use together, and helping children to love words.

Reviews

[sylvie · Rating 5 out of 5]

am i currently going through a phase where i want to learn every flag and capital for no reason just as a side project even though i’m 17 and better than that? yes. did i see this book in the children’s section of the library and think that it looked embarrassingly good and got it out on a whim? yes. did i read it all at once and so hard i now have a callus on my hand? yeah 😞 is it marketed to nine year olds? yes! was it good? yes!!!
‘perfect for budding vexillologists everywhere’ Yeah I’d have to agree!

[Verushka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forget my nephews, my brothers-in-law grabbed this book when it arrived and spent most of the evening discussing the entries in it — this is a book of flags of every country, and the stories behind each design. It’s fascinating reading — I mean did you know earth has an unofficial flag consisting of seven interlocking silver rings, forming a flower against a deep blue background? It’s to show how we are all connected. The designer, a Swedish student from the Beckmans College of Design in Stockholm designed it and hopes it will fly on Mars one day.

Did you know the islands of Sao Tome and Principe gained independence from Portugal in 1975 and adopted a flag that consists of a red triangle on the left, a wide horizontal yellow band flanked by green bands and two black stars that represent the two main islands…

Actually, let’s rewind that: did you know Sao Tome and Principe were two islands that existed? Because I definitely didn’t. That’s the coolest thing about this book –– it teaches young and older readers about the world and they places they know, and 10000% more about the places they didn’t know about.

[Erin Buhr · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is no question that this lives up to it's title - it is THE flag book. I am always impressed with Lonely Planet books for kids. The information is always interesting. The photos included are stunning. This book is no exception. It covers what you'd expect - all the flags of the world. It also covers other interesting information about flags such as international ship flag signals. Unique stories about flags. Semaphore flags - a way of sending codes with handheld flags. So much. There is so much I didn't know about flags. A thorough and fascinating book....about flags.

[Lin · Rating 5 out of 5]

If only I had this book as a kid - I might not be mixing up the Philippines with Portugal, or thinking South Africa was a continent. Interesting and fun mix of flags, history, geography and culture. Yay for vexillology!
Addit: half a star off for putting Romania's flag back to front, WHY?

[Soraya Nur Aina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lonely planet for kids seems to be aimed at adults too because it's also really fun for adults to read! Well yeah, this is really an encyclopedia of flags from all over the world.

The illustrations are beautiful, divided into 5 continents and there are even explanations about what flag manners are, international flag signals, oldest countries flag legends, semaphore flags and other interesting facts about flags.

I even just discovered the fact that almost all flags in the world use three colors: red, white, blue except Jamaica. There are countries called Tonga, Honduras, Trinidad, Cape Verde, Lesotho. Also just found out that the study that studies flags is called Vexilology.

After reading this, I just took a quiz on guessing the flag and got almost everything right, WHOW

[Sue.the.very.busy.reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Another great recommendation from my grandson!

He really enjoyed The Flag Book—perfect for a young geography lover! He especially liked all the colorful graphics showing where each country is located on its continent. He was fascinated by the history behind the flags, including when each country was founded and what the colors and symbols on the flags mean.
His favorite country from the book? The Democratic Republic of the Congo! He was amazed to learn it's home to vast rainforests filled with all kinds of plants and animals. 🌿
A fun and educational read for curious kids!

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

When your daughter gets a book of flags (after loving geography as a child), and her first-grader decides it's the coolest thing... We compare our favorites (his is anything blue -- I like interesting geometry such as Marshall Islands, Seychelles, and Guyana) and what we think makes a good design. Plus the book includes some great stories about flags. (The Vanuatu artist who designed that country's flag later saw it raised to celebrate his win in an international boxing competition.)

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son loves geography and flags. If you have a kid like that (or are like that yourself), you'll love it. It is a heavily illustrated heavy book with history and detail on each country and flag.

[Charlotte · Rating 1 out of 5]

unreadable on Kindle

Unreadable on Kindle. Only good in physical form. I am returning this book right now. I was so excited about this 😢

[Tymur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know 70+ country's