- Yvonne Yin
Recommended Reads
Title: Oxford Illustrated Shakespeare Dictionary
Authors: David & Ben Crystal
No. of pages: 352
Call No.: PR2892 Cry
The authors, linguistics expert David Crystal and his son Ben, a Shakespearean producer, have combined forces to produce this remarkable work that not only explains the meanings of words as used in Shakespeare's time (and many have quite different meanings today), but also gives an invaluable insight into the theatrical practices of the day.
For example, a “bully” used to mean “good friend” and a “partisan” was a fearsome-looking spear. And why did Shakespeare’s earlier plays not have Act divisions? For the answer to this and other questions, check out this book!
Title: Wonders of Our World
Author: Carron Brown
No. of pages: 32
Call No.: N5333 Bro
This book depicting natural and man-made wonders has a unique feature: shine a light behind a page and you will see new things that were not visible before. For example, the Great Wall of China may look empty and peaceful, but when you shine a torchlight behind the picture, you will see that it is surrounded by attackers!
Entertaining yet informative, this title should be suitable for lower primary schoolchildren.
Title: Wayside Flowers of Singapore
Authors: Kaw Jon Boon and Louise Neo
No. of pages: 191
Call No.: QK365 Kaw
This easy-to-use book is arranged by colour of flower and has the added useful feature of naming the roads or localities where the flowers were photographed. So, if you were at Jurong East MRT Station, for example, and noticed a plant with small red and white flowers, you could browse the red colour section of the book and identify it as the artillery plant. (The book also tells you why it is called the “artillery plant”). Recommended for all who have an interest in the local wildflower scene!