Kids & Drugs (Kids in Crisis Series) by DeVore, Cynthia

Kids & Drugs (Kids in Crisis Series) by DeVore, Cynthia

Profiles an individual who uses drugs, discussing his choices and the consequences of his actions, and includes statistics and information about drug use by children in the United States.

Gr 3-6--These titles discuss issues that effect children on a daily basis. Each one includes a note of the books' intended purpose to parents and teachers, a biographical sketch of a youngster involved in the issue, the choices and consequences of the young person's actions, information and statistics, and a final chapter that discusses different scenarios that solicit readers' responses. With the exception of the chapters on statistics, the information is extremely limited. The series is more of a self-help collection in that is intended to alert children to the dangers and consequences of drugs, gangs, and guns. Unfortunately, the demand for this type of book is not by ``at risk'' youngsters, but rather students who need basic information for reports. In addition, the language is frequently beyond the third-grade level, yet the format and content will not appeal to older students. ``The Need To Know Library'' or ``The Drug Abuse Prevention Library'' (Rosen) are much better series on the same topics.

Ann M. Burlingame, North Regional Library, Raleigh, NC