Zoehfeld and Meisel add competently to this venerable series as they explain the three states of matter to beginning readers. Children are invited to make personal observations of water as it changes from one state to another, and the homey experiments are demonstrated by a cheerful cast of boys and girls, parents, and animals. The handy lesson in fundamental science will be appreciated by teachers and enjoyed by children.

Gr 1-3-A fact-filled, accessible study of solids, liquids, and gases. The book gives examples of each state of matter and some simple activities that demonstrate the attributes of each. The last page presents three related science experiments. The author's use of sentence fragments, such as "Water flowing in the creek," is bothersome, but the humorous illustrations add to the text and provide a good mix of children of both genders and various races enjoying science. The page layout makes this title suitable for use with groups; the easy-to-read text makes it a good choice for independent reading and research. Teachers will delight in the clear definitions and examples used to introduce concepts that are often offered on a much higher level.-Marty Abbott Goodman, L. J. Bell Elementary School, Rockingham, NC

Once again the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out-about Science series takes on a really difficult concept and dramatizes it with hands-on examples from everyday life. This time, the concept is the three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas. The explanations are clear with a simple, informal text for the new reader, and the lively line-and-watercolor pictures bring in humor and commonsense (Did you ever drink a glass of blocks?). Water is the central example of how some things change from solid to liquid to gas, but words and pictures show that most things in the child's world stay in one state or another (And it's a good thing they do! Can you imagine a world where . . . ?) A final page includes simple activities to do to find out more. (Reviewed November 1, 1998)