School Library Journal
Gr 3 6—Specifically addressing young readers with no memory of that tragic day, America combines news reports with published eyewitness accounts. Brown's compelling narrative chronologically recounts the morning's events in a tone both straightforward and compassionate, without resorting to sensationalism. Brown's watercolor illustrations, covering most of each spread, mirror this voice, conveying the day's chaos and despair without unnecessarily frightening readers. The lack of a table of contents, chapter breaks, and an index suggests that this is a one-sitting read, but the book certainly contains enough information for research. An author's note, source notes, and a brief bibliography are included.—Rebecca Dash Donsky, New York Public Library |