Even though Mount Everest measures 29,028 feet high, it may begrowing about two inches a year. A mountain might be thousands offeet high, but it can still grow taller or shorter each year.Mountains are created when the huge plates that make up the earth'souter shell very slowly pull and push against one another. Read andfind out about all the different kinds of mountains.

Grade 2-3-In this clear, concise presentation, four childrenintroduce the subject of mountain formation by taking a hike intheir local community. The youngsters appear throughout the book,commenting in dialogue bubbles about specific facts, givingdemonstrations of ways mountains change, or making humorous asides.They provide continuity and keep the tone light while informationis related to explain why fossils of sea animals are found atopmountains, the various layers in the earth, why volcanoes form, andthe effects of erosion. The text and illustrations work togetherwell in this sequential, well-organized book. Much credit goes toHale's engaging watercolor illustrations done in cheery colors;they are simply drawn but add effective examples and diagrams. Usedwith Franklyn Branley's Volcanoes (HarperCollins, 1985), this fineaddition to the science series would be of value to studentsinterested in the geology and the changes of planetEarth.
Ages 5-9. Four children and a dog climbing a foresttrail provide the framework for this discussion of mountains. Alongthe way, the knowledgeable characters explain the earth's structureand tectonic plates as well as the different types of mountains andhow they are formed. Bright line-and-watercolor-wash pictures anddiagrams illustrate the text. Apart from the problem of scale thatcrops up when showing four children and a tree sitting on across-section of the earth extending down for 95 miles, theillustrations succeed quite well in showing the structures, forces,and processes that mold mountains. An appealing addition to theLet's-Read-and-Find-Out series.