Australia to Zimbabwe: A Rhyming Romp Around the World to 24 Countries

My friends and I pored over this book and promptly ordered it for the grandchildren. I plan to use it for a cultural experience with them, letting them choose a country to explore through the recipes, the music and crafts. This book is the one stop shop for facts and activities. Would recommend it for any age.

Must buy! Great for kids 7-12, teachers, and adults too. Excellent poems about each country, facts, and pictures. I have similar books about world countries (I'm a teacher), but this book is more nuanced and different- more detailed and less cliche. With obvious input by natives from each country/region.

A great addition to our homeschool library. Tons of facts, fun crafts and recipes, great recommendations for further reading and online resources.

Love the poems that go with each country. A lot of very useful information. Very colorful and fun to use.

Very enjoyable.

Great resource for elementary school.

Ruth Fitts' “Australia to Zimbabwe – A Rhyming Romp Around the World to 24 Countries” is a unique book. Rather than attempting to explore 1 country in-depth, or 1 particular aspect of every country (say, the geography), Ms. Fitts takes a look at one country for each letter of the alphabet (with “W” standing for “World” and “X” unfortunately not having an appropriate parallel in today's world) While the book is not designed for the adult reader, it is certainly NOT an insult to his or her intelligence, nor is it too in-depth or heavy for the younger reader.Each chapter starts with an illustrated rhyming introduction to the country in question. The poetic endeavors are illustrated with photos of the people, places, and things described in the poem, AND the poems are not carbon copies of each other – unlike some other books of poetry I've read, the rhythms and rhyme schemes of the poem for each country differ so that the reader does not feel trapped in a greeting card store by the time they're done.The photos from the leading poem are then repeated in the next X (4 to 12 pages or so), augmented with other photos, in which a prose explanation of each is provided. Finally, each chapter has a geography page, a recipe page (with some simplication offered for the American marketplace), and even a craft page.The author does not avoid sticky issues about the countries in the book; these are separated out into special separate pages included in the chapter of the affected countries. The Vietnam War(s), Zimbabwe's apartheid history, and others(but, unfortunately, not Taiwan or Tibet under the “China” chapter; these merit no more than a sentence each) have a half to full page to address the most controversial and shameful aspects of a country's past.All in all, this was an ambitious project, which not only shows off the devotion and dedication of the creator, BUT it also works for the reader. I'm passing my copy along to my 10 year old grandchild, who I hope will also find it stimulating.RATING: 4 ½ stars, rounded up to 5 stars where half stars are not permitted.DISCLOSURE: I was awarded a free copy of this book in a random draw. No requirement of a review was made, let alone any conditions on the tone / content of a review, however, it was suggested that “an honest review would be appropriate” upon winning.

During the Olympics this year, my 9-year-old son became very interested in the various countries represented in each sport. I gave him Australia to Zimbabwe because it presents kid-friendly information about 24 countries in a very visual format. He was able to learn about each country's geography, tidbits of history, tons of culture, important landmarks, and a few words from the language. Additionally, the author suggests books, music, films, internet sites, games and recipes for further study and fun. Because my son was so intrigued and since there are so many extension ideas for each country, I've decided to use this book as part of our homeschool curriculum for the upcoming year.(Note for Christian and/or Conservative Families: There is some introduction to religions of various cultures. I share openly with my children about other religions so we can talk about how Christians should respond to their worldview, so it hasn't been a problem from my perspective. There are also some subtle liberal views thrown in - about handgun laws in Japan, for instance. We discuss those, too.)