How to be Good at science, Technology and engineering

Science cut down to size

Author: Various

Publisher: Dorling Kindersley Price: £16.99 / $19.99 Release date: Out now

We miss colourful children’s encyclopedias. Once a staple of every child’s bedroom, now they’re more likely to be seen clogging up car boot sales or charity shop shelves. It’s a sorry state of affairs, which makes the prospect of a book like this landing on our desk with an almighty ‘thud’ such a pleasing occurrence. This book in particular is a masterclass in brand identity – stating precisely what it plans to do on the cover and then proceeding to do exactly that, aided by colourful design, numerous boxouts and an avowed refusal to talk down to its target audience. Science can be a dense and difficult subject, but it doesn’t need to be if taught correctly, an objective that is clearly paramount here. In all honesty, while reading this we had such fun that even we learned a thing or two, and we definitely can’t say that about everything we review. Certain publishers’ output has resulted in their name becoming indelibly linked with quality, and Dorling Kindersley can certainly lay claim to being a member of this particular category.