***Title was provided by the publisher, opinions are my own.***
I am a HUGE “Stuff You Should Know” podcast fan but, I have to admit, I wasn’t sure how hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant’s personalities would translate onto the pages of a book for middle grade kids. After all, I view these two as the masters of knowing A LITTLE about A LOT. How would Clark and Bryant’s perceived genius resonate with young readers?
Brilliantly – it turns out!
The on-page voice of Stuff Kids Should Know is youthful without being overly parental or flirting with condescending. The authors aren’t overly high-brow about their knowledge and never seem to talk down to their younger readers. As they often do on their “Stuff You Should Know” Podcast, Josh and Chuck balance “dummy”-ing down a topic with witty anecdotes that will have curious kids quickly turning the pages to learn more and more.
Each Stuff Kids Should Know topic is age appropriate – for young readers through, in my judgement, high schoolers (and adults). I thoroughly enjoyed Chapter 7 discussing The Pet Rock – a phenomenon that I’d heard very little amount from the ’70’s. The only objection I had with any chapter of the book was the characterization of “Do(ugh)nuts” as a snack food (everyone knows these sweet treats are a full breakfast).
The lasting beauty of this book is its versatily. Stuff Kids Should Know can serve as an informative read for your middle/high-schoolers, or as a fun read-a-long title for parents and elementary schoolers/beginning readers.
I can certainly envision other dads and moms, as they read the book to their kids, stopping to tell their first-grader about a Mr. Potato Head experience, or run in with a Child Prodigy (the subjects of Chapters 1 and 14, respectively). Parents reading along with kids could start every chapter by asking their child what they knew about the subject – testing how well the stories of these topics have been passed down or portrayed by other media coverage.
Note: if you plan to read Stuff Kids Should Know, the footnotes are exemplary. These tidbits add the touches of humor that the SYSK’s podcast subscribers have come to enjoy over the last decade of “Stuff You Should Know” brilliance. The footnotes give the chapters the personality SYSK listeners have become accustomed to.
There is no doubt to fans of the “Stuff You Should Know” podcast that hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant are smart, charming, and funny. After reading Stuff Kids Should Know, fans can add another superlative: adept (bedtime) storytellers.
Amazon Buy Link: here.
