The Shape of Things: How Mapmakers Picture Our World by Dean Robbins, Matt Tavares
Published by Alfred A. Knopf on August 20, 2024
ISBN: 0593479254
Genres: Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads

With simple, straightforward text and realistic drawings this book tells the story of mapmaking from cave drawings and bone carvings to modern satellite imagery. It includes numerous types of maps such as papyrus, stone tablets, papier-mache globes, and computer-generated maps. The author also explains how mapmaking has evolved from trying to record what could be directly observed about the physical world, to using compasses and theodolites, to using satellites and lasers. The end of the book includes a timeline with very helpful illustrations, notes, lists of information about mapmakers, and a bibliography. The illustrator, Matt Tavares, lives in Maine.

Recommended for 4-8 year-olds, this book would make an attractive, informative introduction for young readers interested in cartography.

Reviewed by Crystal Wilder, University of Southern Maine, Gorham Campus Library