Gr 6–10—Readers can explore some of the world's most captivating mysteries in this series. What really goes on at Area 51? What purpose does the Great Sphinx serve? Is Atlantis real? Karst serves up fascinating evidence to support numerous theories on each subject but readers will learn about much more than modern myths and mysteries. Area 51 gives a detailed, but still very readable, history of the experimental aircraft designed by the military as well as the impact of nuclear testing and Cold War culture on the mythos surrounding the military base. Reading Great Sphinx will give kids insight into ancient Egyptian architecture and the history of Egyptology. The books are presented with high-interest photos of modern aircraft, archeological digs, and historical images combined with creepy graphics and photos of famous "evidence." Back matter includes a glossary, bibliography, recommended websites, and an index. VERDICT Recommended for both research and personal interest reading.

Gr 6–10—With only the barest dashes of skepticism, these handsomely produced surveys present budding cryptozoologists and conspiracy theorists with rich arrays of historical anecdotes and encounters, supposed evidence, "scientific" explanations of varying plausibility, and tantalizing speculations. Thanks to the magic of photo manipulation and digital painting, along with the usual blurry photos and cryptic artifacts a more satisfactory admixture of perfectly clear and realistic new images of Nessie, UFOs, Bigfoot, aliens, shipwrecks, floods, and weird natural phenomena provide suitably thrilling illustrations. Karst goes beyond standard issue recaps—ensuring, for instance, that readers will come away from Atlantis knowing more than they did about Madame Blavatsky, as well as Mu and Lemuria, and also expanding his topics with references to, at best, tangentially relevant mysteries such as the fate of Amelia Earhart in Loch Ness Monster.