Lists for Curious Kids; Tracey Turner, illustrated by Caroline Selmes

Who doesn’t love a good list? Featuring over two-hundred-and-fifty lists and exploding with a plethora of information, Lists for Curious Kids is a fact-filled feast that will satisfy the appetite of the most knowledge-hungry kids.

Want to know 8 animals that should be small but aren’t or 8 rulers with unflattering nicknames? How about 21 Indian spices, 15 space firsts and 7 bad movies titles? What about the Beaufort scale, 6 facts about bacteria and how to say hello in 9 different languages? List for Curious Kids has got you covered.

Coverage is vast and there is no predicting what might come next. There are so many topics covered. Just to give a flavour, you can find lists on: space, countries, religion, animals, the human body, rollercoasters, food, lakes, sport, gases, presidents, vitamins, languages, phobias, roads and hiccups. This list is by no means exhaustive!

Topics mingle freely on the double page spreads; one double page spread features hot air balloons, marathon swims, unusual festivals and Norse Gods, the next has you learning about expensive cars, historical status symbols, random world records and sea turtles. Some lists have brief introductions, a bit of background knowledge is always good and will be appreciated by young readers.

There is so much trivia packed into the one-hundred-and-sixty pages and even as an adult I found myself learning plenty of new things including jokes about pirates, knights and cheese. The presentation of the book is first class. Pages are bursting with colour and are beautifully illustrated by Caroline Selmes. It is a great book for dipping in and out of but be warned, it is also highly addictive and it becomes almost impossible to stop reading, there is always the desire to read just one more list. 

This book is so much fun. I have been sharing lists of all sorts of things with anyone who I can get to listen. Expect readers to be testing friends, family and teachers on their knowledge of weirdly named body parts, unusual museums, facts about sloths, incredible buildings and providing plenty of laughs with jokes about ancient Egyptian mummies.

Fascinating, utterly absorbing, highly engaging and fantastic fun - I could easily come up with a very long list of brilliant words to describe how good Lists for Curious Kids is. A superb book that will provide many hours of entertainment for readers of all ages.

Recommended for 7+.