Rocks and Minerals

This new addition to the DK ‘Eye Wonder’ series provides a splendidly comprehensive introduction to Rocks and Minerals covering rock formation, kinds of rock and the use we make of them. The dynamic nature of the changing landscape is revealed: ‘rocks and forms are being destroyed as you read this book’. And over millions of years rocks can change their category from igneous to sedimentary to metamorphic. The titles in information series can be formulaic and this makes it more difficult for the individual ‘voice’ and enthusiasm to come through. But here the written text that heads each double spread achieves a friendly and engaging tone.

An enormous amount of information is covered; each double spread is rich with annotated illustration – both photographs and diagrams. But the pages have been thoughtfully planned so that they are integrated and coherent. We have, for instance, a double spread devoted to Igneous rock with the different kinds on one page and on the other a large photograph of a striking example – the Giant’s Causeway in Antrim. The sheer amount of information here would overwhelm most five-year-olds and they would need to share the book with an adult. Slightly older children will enjoy it at home or at school but will need the opportunity to talk about concepts such as ‘weathering’, ‘erosion’ and ‘crystal formation’.