Waterloo (Battles That Changed the World)

Grade 7-10-Crompton presents the background history in his first three chapters, and devotes the bulk of the book to a description of the battle. However, the only two maps are unclear reproductions of old battle drawings and are of extremely limited value. This omission is the most serious, but not the only, flaw here. Waterloo is awkwardly written and contains numerous errors, particularly in dates, and typos. It uses difficult, unexplained vocabulary and historical references ("The head of Cromwell on a pretty woman!," for instance). None of the primary quotes are footnoted. While the book is attractively put together and has many color illustrations and a detailed chronology, these pluses can't save an unsuccessful effort.
Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY