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Any child who’s ever suffered through tangled hair should read The Copper Braid of Shannon O’Shea, a book that’s bound to make little readers feel better about their own agony. Regardless of hairstyle or length, kids will relish this tall tale a story inspired by myths of women who undo their bound locks and thereby release chaos. Chaos certainly reigns here. It’s unleashed when a tiny sprite named Bernice is captivated by a shimmering wisp of hay caught in the braid of Shannon O’Shea. She plucks it out, causing new bits of hay to appear, and Bernice’s fellow sprites come to the rescue, unfastening the many ribbons and bows holding Shannon’s braid together. A tidal wave of unexpected objects begins to fall from the seemingly endless weave, starting with a few buttons and thimbles, and building to a burgeoning crescendo that includes a volcano, a dinosaur egg and the lost island of Atlantis! In this, her first book, Laura Esckelson has written a rhyming text filled with humor, as every tangle unfurls: As they unbraided, a song filled the air From some carolers who had been tangled in there, And when they were found, were puzzled to find The holidays were over and nine months behind. Pam Newton whimsically illustrates Shannon’s riot of copper hair, every inch of which is manned by an overwhelmed gang of fairies and sprites. Every being whether fairy or animal, mermaid or pirate wears a silly expression of surprise. Only an artist with Newton’s lighthearted, deft touch could make such a wildly unrealistic tale spring to life. Where can all this chaos end, one wonders. Esckelson brings it all to a fine conclusion, when, after 17 miles of madcap unfurling, the army of sprites finally comes to the end of the braid, thereby reaching a much-relieved Shannon O’Shea. Then, of course, it’s time for the sprites to go back to work, re-braiding her unruly locks. Just like the heroine’s hair, there’s more to The Copper Braid of Shannon O’Shea than meets the eye its seemingly simple plot is filled with raucous pleasure at every curl. Alice Cary writes from Groton, Massachusetts.

Plenty of people have read Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, and even more are familiar with the story of Ahab’s doomed pursuit of the white whale, but few are aware that the climactic event at the book’s end is based on a true incident. Nathaniel Philbrick tells this astounding tale in Revenge of the Whale: The True Story of the Whaleship Essex, an adaptation of his best-selling adult book In the Heart of the Sea that young readers will love. In the Heart of the Sea won a National Book Award in 2000. Now, with Revenge of the Whale, Philbrick presents an abridged version of the story, complete with maps, diagrams and photos. Much of what is known about the ill-fated voyage that occurred in 1820 comes from the long-forgotten memoirs of the Essex’s cabin boy, Thomas Nickerson, who was only 14 years old when he signed on with the ship. Rammed by an angry sperm whale, the Essex sank in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, forcing the 20-member crew, most of whom were in their teens, to take to the sea in three small boats. Philbrick’s account of how they braved the ocean and faced a wrathful whale makes for fascinating reading. Although death awaited many on the harrowing journey of almost 3,000 miles, eight of the men lived to be rescued. In order to tell his story accurately, Philbrick relates incidents of cannibalism and deprivation material that’s hardly the stuff of children’s literature. For that reason, the book is recommended for middle schoolers and older readers.

Revenge of the Whale is filled with details of life on a whaling vessel, as well as vivid illustrations that add pictures to those words. Philbrick also paints a fascinating portrait of 19th century Nantucket, and he’s included a supplementary reading list for those who would like to learn more about the topics covered in his book.

Vivid and compelling, Revenge of the Whale is history at its best. Kids with a fascination for all things nautical will find this book memorable perhaps too much so.

Good Kate and Bad Kate battle in the same body. Good Kate Malone is the minister’s daughter, the honor roll student, the good sister. She makes meals, irons shirts, takes care of her sick brother Toby and awaits admission to MIT. Bad Kate is Miss Suck-up, Miss Perfect disagreeable, disrespectful and a bit too fast with her boyfriend, Mitchell A. Pangborn III. Reverend Malone, Kate’s father, thinks she has applied to many top schools, giving her lots of options. In fact, she has only applied to MIT. Kate knows her friends in AP Chemistry by name and grade average. There’s Diana Sung, 3.86 GPA, accepted by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Eric Warren, 3.84, accepted by Dartmouth and Omar Hakeen, 4.12 GPA, heading to Howard University on a full scholarship. Kate figures she has paid her dues, followed all of the rules, aced the standardized tests and concludes: “I am brilliant. I am special. I am going to MIT like my mom did. I am going to change the world.” But Kate’s life does not proceed as neatly as a chemistry experiment with predictable results. She is rejected by MIT because she lacks “that something extra” beyond the academic grind. Later, Kate earns that something extra in a renewed relationship with Teri Litch, a neighbor whose house burns down. Kate assists her father’s congregation in rebuilding the house and taking the neighbors into the Malone home until the work is done. When further tragedy strikes and events spin out of control, she is shaken from her self-centered existence and finds an unexpected bond with Teri. Out of this alchemy a new Kate is formed, one who must examine her life and goals and heart. By not following the expected path in her life, it seems that she is able to truly find herself.

As seen in Anderson’s novel Speak, a 1999 National Book Award finalist, the author is a master of voice, for it is Kate Malone’s voice that will capture readers the fresh, sassy, smart voice of an A-student who is not so sure which Kate she is, Good Kate or Bad Kate. This story will speak to older teenagers in a voice they will recognize and remember. Dean Schneider is a middle school English teacher in Nashville.

A photograph serves as the frontispiece for James M. McPherson’s Fields of Fury: The American Civil War (Atheneum, $22.95, 96 pages, ISBN 0689848331, ages 9-12). A farm boy in overalls and straw hat holds up two handfuls of what appear to be pebbles. In reality, they’re bullets, some from the guns of Confederate soldiers, some from Union weapons. The viewer can’t tell which is which, and therein lies a lesson breathtaking in its simplicity. McPherson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom, has crafted a history book for children that stays with this principle throughout. Simple, straightforward prose details the cascade of events that led to the Civil War. The conflict and its aftermath are recounted with the author’s trademark authority and illustrated with a vivid collection of photographs, maps and paintings. Written in a linear fashion with an accompanying timeline on the inside cover, McPherson’s book devotes a page or two to each important event in the war. In addition, there is a “Quick Facts” box with each event, detailing interesting and curious data on the subject.

Certain events deserve more than a page, of course, and McPherson obliges. The topic of slavery, for instance, gets more space, as do critical battles like Gettysburg and postwar Reconstruction. The author also tackles subjects not often covered, such as women who served in the conflict, and the ways in which the wounded were cared for. In addition to the expected glossary, bibliography and index, McPherson also provides a list of internet sites that today’s computer-savvy kids will appreciate.

Did you know that Abraham Lincoln was not the featured speaker at the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg? That job fell instead to Edward Everett, a 70-year-old orator and former vice-presidential candidate (he ran against Lincoln in 1860). Everett spoke for nearly two hours, and the press preferred his speech to Lincoln’s, which they reported as “dull and commonplace.” But Everett was not so dim he remarked later that he wished that he could have come “as near the central idea of the occasion” in the few minutes it took Lincoln to deliver his message.

It is this kind of knowledge that readers will find in Normon Bolotin’s Civil War A to Z: A Young Reader’s Guide to Over 100 People, Places, and Points of Importance, which approaches the subject from a completely different angle than McPherson’s book. This is a wonderfully comprehensive reference volume for kids. People, events and places are listed alphabetically. Each item succinctly communicates facts and figures, and there are appropriate illustrations. While Bolotin covers every major event and person in the conflict, it is in the minutiae of the war that he really excels. Curious children will be fascinated by subjects such as the origin of the MiniŽ ball, the thrilling and largely unknown saga of Robert Smalls, an African-American ship’s pilot, and the diaries of Mary Chesnut.

This is a book that can simply be read from front to back, although it’s more fun to flip through looking for items of interest. Want to know why Union and Confederate names for battles are different? What a “Sanitary Fair” might be? Or what a “Sherman’s Necktie” is? Just look in the glossary, which is brief but full of unusual facts. Bolotin’s book, the latest of several he has written on the Civil War for young people, will help history students round out their understanding of the war and perhaps inspire ideas for a term paper or two.

While each of these books approaches the subject in a different way, both Fields of Fury and Civil War A to Z serve as admirable introductions to an event that was pivotal to our nation’s history. Fields of Fury is visually rich, while Civil War A to Z contains hundreds of essential facts. Both are excellent jumping-off points for young minds wishing to learn more about the war. James Neal Webb does copyright research at Vanderbilt University.