School Library Journal
(Tue Nov 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)
LOH-HAGAN, Virginia . Bounty Hunter . ISBN 9781634710947 ; ISBN 9781634712927 ; ISBN 9781634713917 . LOH-HAGAN, Virginia . Food Stylist . ISBN 9781634710954 ; ISBN 9781634712934 ; ISBN 9781634713924 . LOH-HAGAN, Virginia . Pet Food Tester . ISBN 9781634710961 ; ISBN 9781634712941 ; ISBN 9781634713931 . ea vol: 32p. (Odd Jobs). further reading. glossary. index. photos. websites. Cherry Lake . Aug. 2016. lib. ed. $20.95. pap. $9.95. ebk. $32.95. Gr 4-8 A look at unconventional jobs in a highly visual format paired with simple texts. The repetition of common sight words and short sentences may improve fluency for some students, but the flow will seem choppy to more able readers. Details are authentic and draw on quotes and anecdotes from those in the field. In Pet Food Taster , for instance, experts cite the current demand for human grade pet food and debate whether to use animals or people to test it. Big Animal Trainer and Bounty Hunter depict the degree of risk taking and the precautions required. Pre-questions for each chapter, bright yellow fact boxes, captioned photographs, and bolded vocabulary words will boost comprehension. In addition to the back matter, a trivia page rounds out each volume.
ALA Booklist
(Sat Oct 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)
These installments in the Odd Job series highlight paths less traveled in the working world, and the novelty of each career is a big part of the appeal. On pages broken up by stock photos, each title surveys a few people working in the field (though there are no source notes), offers a list of key jargon, describes some of the requirements for the job, and closes with a chapter briefly metimes too briefly ting controversial aspects of the career. Although Big Animal Trainer only covers in passing the ethics of forcing captive animals to perform, Loh-Hagan emphasizes that it's a dangerous job and it's important to treat animals well. The direct, simple sentences are alarmingly abrupt, and curiously, though they're surely intended to make the text easier to read, the overall paragraphs can be quite confusing. Best suited for larger collections.