My family definitely enjoys time outside sledding, hiking, biking or just playing in the mud. However, there are some days when a lot of time is actually spent indoors instead of out. Sometimes, this is because the weather is just too crummy, other times, the kids might be sick, or life just catches up with us.
On days like that, reading is one of our favorite activities. My five children are a force to be reckoned with when they enter a library; they long to read every book there, and I have to give them specific boundaries or we literally would bring home 200 books at a time.
With my kids’ love of books, we were all thrilled to receive and review this sample pack of five books from National Geographic Kids. They sent us the Dream Journal, The Big Book of Bling, Nerd A-Z, Brain Candy, and the Treasury of Bible Stories.
Be sure to scroll down to the end of this post for a giveaway too!
Treasury of Bible Stories
This book is gorgeous. Honestly, I was surprised when I received the book because I did not realize that National Geographic published story volumes like this. My surprise gave way to excitement as I looked through the book. It has well written text and is a very beautifully illustrated book.
It is published with lovely, full page pictures bringing to life the well known stories of the Old and New Testaments. The narratives are written to be engaging, and the text is quite faithful to the traditional Bible stories.
My son loves to sit on the couch and look through the pictures. It is a quality bound, hardcover book that I am certain will last for years to come.
National Geographic Kids Dream Journal
This is a cute, smaller book geared towards the tween/young tween age group. It has a format of blank (with sidebar illustrations) pages intermixed with sections on dream facts and history.
The blank pages are designed for kids to write down their own dreams. This book would be great for children who already like to write, and are curious about dreams
My 12 year old daughters enjoyed reading the information in this book, but they have not used the dream journal pages yet. The illustrations are full color, and fun to look through.
The Big Book of Bling
This book is perfect for kids who like knowing facts about the biggest and best things. My children are always wondering “Mom, what is the biggest diamond?” or “What do castles look like inside?”. This book answers questions like that, plus more. It is filled with facts about all the most sparkly, most colorful and fanciest parts of the natural and geographical world.
It is organized by chapters with titles such as “Extravagant Animals”, “Super Splurges” and “Splendid Science”. Designed to get kids attention while also giving them new, exciting information. It is a good mix of sensational headlines and high quality information.
“I loved the section on elaborate manors and castles. The pictures were really neat, and I enjoyed knowing how many bathrooms and bedrooms each estate had.”
-My 12 year old daughter
The binding is hardcover, and seems sturdy. It is a large format book, perfect for enjoying with a couple kids at a time.
Brain Candy: 500 Sweet Facts to Satisfy Your Curiosity
This little book is a perfect stocking suffer or gift for a curious child in your life. It is a full color, photo illustrated book about all kind of facts. It is ideal for the child who likes to ask allll the questions.
“I like the where it talked about the rubber duck that travels around the world”
-My 6 year old daughter
This book is jam packed with information to keep an inquisitive child engaged. It is particularly ideal for a newer reader, and the print is bold and in a larger type face than many books.
Nerd A to Z: Your Reference to Figuratively Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know
Out of the five books we received, this one is the favorite of my three oldest children ( ages 12, 12, and 10). It is organized in alphabetical order, a true compendium of random information on anything from pirates to tardigrades. The book has paragraphs for each subject, making this a good read for kids from 8-13 or so.
“I liked the part about the people who walk on coals with bare feet. It was cool that they could do that without too much pain”.
-My 8 year old son
Each section has a full color photo to illustrate it. The writing is fun, and at times silly, but always accurate and informative. It has inspired my children to do more research on several subjects. The binding is a high quality hardcover; I think would hold up well over time.
“My favorite part of this book was the section on sword making. It gave me ideas for making my own swords”
-My 10 year old son.
My family loved this book because it had information on so many different topics. Each time they browse through it, they find something new to discover.
Books are Great Gifts
These books would be great, last minute gifts for the curious and adventurous children in your life. They are all available on Amazon, or you can check your local bookstore. Books are wonderful gifts because they develop imagination, and, they aren’t just one more toy that will break.
Check out this post for more holiday book gift ideas. Happy Reading!
Win from National Geographic Kids Books:
One lucky family will win all FIVE of these Nat Geo books.
As usual, please use the widget below to enter to win. The winner will be emailed and announced on this post in the widget. Have questions? Please don’t hesitate to contact me at mountainmamatales(at)gmail(dot)com so I can help! Sorry, this giveaway is open to the U.S. only.
Nat Geo Kids books© 2019, Tales of a Mountain Mama. All rights reserved. Republication, in part or entirety, requires a link back to this original post and permission from the author.
What an awesome giveaway! Thank you for all the tips also about getting outdoors.
You’re so welcome!