Gift Books That Will Get Kids Excited to Read and Be Creative

Lee Littlewood
Fri, 03 Aug 2018 21:00:00 -0700
Lifestyle

Before school starts, gifting a special book that screams "WOW!" is a smart way to get children excited to read again. These new coffee table-worthy tomes are too cool.

"Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan; illustrated by John Rocco; Disney Hyperion; 226 pages; $39.99.
Updated: Fri Aug 03, 2018

Before school starts, gifting a special book that screams "WOW!" is a smart way to get children excited to read again. These new coffee table-worthy tomes are too cool.

"Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan; illustrated by John Rocco; Disney Hyperion; 226 pages; $39.99.

"The Lightning Thief," the first book in Rick Riordan's best-selling "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" novel series, was an international hit when released and has been read by most kids at this point. This deluxe gift edition is festooned with detailed, gorgeous illustrations from artist John Rocco. The action-packed mythical tale of young Percy Jackson, who has to return god Zeus's master lightning bolt and bring peace to a battling Mount Olympus, is full of mystery, adventure, human betrayal and strengths, resonating powerfully with an entire generation of kids.

With maps and lavish pictures and extra details and a big-time wow factor, Disney Hyperion's oversized gift book will thrill.

"The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures and Aliens" by Mark Salisbury; Abrams Publishing; 144 pages; $29.99.

"You hold in your hands the secrets of the magic that brought the Star Wars saga to life," reads a blurb on the back of this fascinating all-encompassing behind-the-scenes "Star Wars" movie guide. Kids and adults will see how detailed sketches became lifelike creatures. Through diagrams and up-close photographs, they'll learn about different types of special effects, from puppetry to motion capture. It's truly amazing, really, to see how the alien beings that we have all known for so many years were cultivated and created. With booklets and accordion folds and interactive flaps, mini sketchbooks, sidebars and "Force Facts," this grand edition is pure movie magic.

"Countdown: 2979 Days to the Moon" by Suzanne Slade; illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez; Peachtree Publishers; 144 pages; $22.99.

Just in time for the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, this oversized, gloriously beautiful book is a poetic, lyrical tale about all it took to accomplish the historical mission. Former mechanical engineer Suzanne Slade, who worked on space projects, has the technical details down to pat and uses her expertise smartly. But what makes this amazing book sing is Slade's captivating and powerful method of goal setting, trial and failure, sacrifice and hard work to achieve a dream. With a poetry setup and magnificent paintings as a backdrop, this ode to the 400,000 people who helped make Project Apollo a reality is fascinating and inspiring.

"Now Make This" curated by Thomas Barnthaler; Phaidon; 120 pages; $19.99.

Twenty-four do-it-yourself kid projects by designers make up this uber-cool book. The white cover shows a boy with crazy hair playing a colorful homemade drum set made of pails and mop sticks, and from this readers know that what's inside will be truly fun. Though the projects require adult supervision, the actual building can be handled by kids of all ages. The international designer-instructed projects are a bit hard to describe; that's how creative and unusual they are. Julia Hasting's "Roll-O Room Divider" is made entirely from toilet rolls, sticky tape and colorful paper, while Neri & Hu's "Fishnet Lamp" aims to reuse plastic bottles by turning them into mod shipwreck-like lamps. Italian designer Giulio Iacchetti's "Bernard the Hermit Crab" is made from finger-shaped balloons filled with rice and a felt body, and looks cool hanging anywhere in the house.

Super-easy instructions and a bend toward unique creativity make "Now Make This" a step above other activity books.

To find out more about Lee Littlewood, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.