Gr 4–6—This series provides overly detailed explanations of the hard science behind ailments making the news. The sophisticated material-utilizing the exact names of enzymes, proteins, and prescription drugs-is incongruously paired with a juvenile design. Color-block pages appear frequently, regurgitating statistics from the text and reading like filler. This discrepancy is amplified by the lack of contextual definitions for vocabulary words. Each volume introduces various celebrities who have battled the featured disease. However, while Ryan White's heartbreaking struggle with AIDS is relevant to the intended audience, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's husband's battle with Alzheimer's might not be known to any but the most precocious young readers. The outdated bibliographic resources and suggested-reading lists, many of which contain books that date from 2007 or earlier, will not be particularly useful for students who are seeking further information.
