The Ultimate Book of Cross-Sections

DK's "The Ultimate Book of Cross-Sections" answers questions: What makes it run, Mommy? What does it look like inside, Daddy? How much does it weigh, Aunt Judy? Answers are found right here inside this book and reveal cross-sections of Cars, Trains, Bulldozers, Tanks, Rescue Vehicles, Record Breakers, Ships, Planes, Jets, and Aircraft. Is there another book like this one that is so comprehensive and detailed? An example of detail is found in the two-page, full-color, cross-section of the Harrier Jet, developed by the United States and Britain. The beauty of the Harrier is that it is VTOL--Vertical Take-off and Landing. Nozzles in the engines are designed to swizzle to aid in engine thrust at take-off and flight float slow-down for landing, making it ideal for aircraft carriers on the seas. The Harrier can carry a variety of bombs, including the Smart Bomb. The seat can be ejected by small jet engines in case of emergency. The aircraft engine itself is designed after the Rolls Royce Pegasus turbofan. There is a light blue box on all cross-sections that shows technical data, including weight, maximum speed, number of crew, wingspan, length, and engine data. On the Harrier page these are the illustrations: a small illustration of the Harrier, a Smart Bomb, a Cluster Bomb, the ejecting seat with the pilot/crew of one, the box of Technical Data, and full across the middle section and more is the cross-section of the Harrier itself, with each unfolded or opened item labeled. Each section is set up by a title page indicating the type, a few blue-print designs, then two pages of content and page numbers of the individual units, the cross-sections, and last, a glossary. DK published its Cross-Section book in 1996 and. It is already out of print and being sold as a collector's item at outrageous prices. Why in the world would DK stop printing such a fabulous book? All I can think of is its expensive price tag at $29.95. However, considering that this book is a compilation of, say 20 other individual cross-section books, it becomes an amazing bargain (if you had the $30 to plop down). There are a few available Cross-Section books left. The decision is yours. The book is a treasure.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in how things work. Beautiful artistry and informative. My son loves it!

My 10 yr. old son brought this book home from the library and loved it. The graphics are second to none and the labels and short captioned boxes of text encouraged him to read several excerpts. The broad range of equipment covered is intriguing even to an adult. It is educational for the young reader to identify vehicles they've read about in school but never visualized. This book will be under our Christmas tree AND under the tree of a nephew who loves figuring out how things work!

This book is a 1997 NCSS Notable