"After what seems like dozens of 'visual dictionary' books about the Star Wars universe, DK Books (and author Simon Beecroft) gets down to the stuff we really care about -- Star Wars Legos. Not only are they excellent gateway drugs to slowly suck your children into the Sarlacc Pit of Star Wars collectibles, but you can bust them up into a million pieces and then put them into something completely different -- try that Transformers! This profusely illustrated volume follows the DK Visual Dictionary format, supplying basic lingo about all the SW characters and vehicles, plus details on the Lego versions..." --Geek Monthly, September 1, 2009

"LEGO Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary is a book full of awesome...In short: If you like the LEGO Star Wars sets and minifigs, you will love this book. If you put it down long enough to let your kids read it, I can pretty much guarantee they'll like it, too." --Wired.com - Geek Dad Blog, October 9, 2009

Grade 4–6—Nate is a sixth grader who has a problem with organization. Everything is going wrong, and he's piling up detention after detention. Things start to improve when he gets a fortune cookie with a message stating that he will "surpass all others," giving him a purpose for the day and leading to humorous incidents such as when he tries to beat a speed record for eating green beans, and when he tickles his science teacher with a feather duster. This fully developed protagonist debuted in a comic strip; this is Peirce's first book about him, and it is a successful, laugh-out-loud venture. Readers meet a variety of characters, each with a unique personality or trait. Peirce's black-and-white ink illustrations, whether they are comics Nate has drawn or other funny images, help to develop the story. Big Nate will fill in gaps in collections that are looking for books for reluctant readers, and for Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Abrams) read-alikes.

-School Library Journal

*Starred Review* Gr. 4-7. What if Alice fell down an air vent in a New York City apartment building instead of down a rabbit hole? Collins considers a similar possibility in her exceptional debut novel, a well-written, fast-moving, action-packed fantasy. Eleven-year-old Gregor expects a long, boring summer of baby-sitting his two-year-old sister, Boots, and his senile grandmother. Distracted with thoughts about his father, who disappeared three years ago, Gregor belatedly notices that Boots has crawled into an air vent in the laundry room. He dives in after her, and the two are sucked downward into the Underland, a fantastic subterranean world of translucent-skinned, violet-eyed humans, and giant talking cockroaches, bats, spiders, and rats. Eventually, the terrified Gregor is transformed into a warrior hero who leads a successful battle against an army of invading rats and discovers his father, who has long been held prisoner by the enemy. Collins creates a fascinating, vivid, highly original world and a superb story to go along with it, and Gregor is endearing as a caring, responsible big brother who rises triumphantly to every challenge. This is sure to be a solid hit with young fantasy fans.

-Booklist

Greg Heffley is back, and with him the trappings that made his first outing, Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2007), such a popular triumph. Once again diarist Greg chronicles a hilarious litany of problems, alternating between home and school, focusing this time on the particular punishments of his reprobate older brother, Rodrick. Whether Greg is suffering on the swim team or trying out for the K–12  school talent show as Magician’s Assistant to a First Grader, his escapades are united by his struggle to avoid embarrassment. As before, he peppers his journal entries with his own cartoons (in look and tone, a sort of hybrid of The Simpsons and the Timbertoes), using them as any 12-year-old would—to add insult to injury. But the real and deeper appeal of Greg’s story is the unapologetic honesty of his adolescence; he comes across as a real kid, and his story is one that will appeal to all those real kids who feel just like him. Grades 5-8.

-Booklist

“Move over, Harry Potter. . . . There’s a new set of titles dominating the bestseller list for kids’ chapter books, and there’s nothing ‘fantasy’ about these.”—Andrea Yeats on NPR’s All Things Considered

“Perfectly pitched wit and believably self-centered hero . . .”—The New York Times

“Charming and hilarious from the get-go. . . . [Kinney has] an uncanny eye for the depredations and triumphs of middle school life.” —The Boston Globe

“The writing is sharp, and the artwork, though deceptively simple, is both entertaining and expressive . . . adding comic punch to these funny-because-they’re-true scenes . . .” —Bookpage

“Perfect for someone about to go to middle school, perfect for parents to help ease their child into this new phase. . . . Kinney has done a wonderful service for preteens by talking about all those awful, embarrassing, and good moments.” —The San Diego Union Tribune

Kindergarten-Grade 6—This alphabet book is not just about words that begin with the 26 letters; it's also a graphic display of the myriad fonts found at a fair. Pages display many samples for each letter, both upper and lowercase, with one subject per letter. For example, "B" shows a bold red outline of a BARN and a black silhouette of a horse at the door with the structure filled with collage-style Bs. Despite the flat graphic style, the pages seem to sparkle and blink with the bright lights of a midway. The endpapers are bold collages of photos of signs at fairs. As alphabet books go, this one is delightful. As graphic art goes, it's alive with evocative, almost magical examples. Readers will be delighted with the images of fun and games, rides and blue ribbons, food and prizes. Pair this book with Lisa Campbell Ernst's The Turn-Around, Upside-Down Alphabet Book (S & S, 2004) or David Pelletier's The Graphic Alphabet (Scholastic, 1996) to introduce children to the delights of shapes and fonts. Introduce basic design concepts with books such as Mark Gonyea's A Book About Design: Complicated Doesn't Make It Good (Holt, 2005) or other graphically illustrated titles such as those by Lois Ehlert or Linnea Riley.

-School Library Journal