Ann Douglas, author of the popular Baby Science: How Babies Really Work!, has created another intriguing non-fiction book, this one for helping children to explore their family history. Subtitled Cracking the Case of Your Family’s Story, this book employs the metaphor of sleuthing to present the idea of research. Using colourful and imaginatively varied page layouts, Douglas introduces children to the many possibilities of a research project centred on one’s own family. Obvious ideas like looking through old photo albums and diaries, interviewing family members, and making a family tree are supplemented by suggestions for adding cultural and historical context by finding old catalogues, automobile brochures, and clothing. Douglas also includes a limited glossary and ideas for using the Internet. She provides model questionnaires and forms for recording family history, and good practical advice about labelling, storing, and sharing it. Her recommendation of a firm time limit for showing videotaped interviews will be appreciated by people expected to view them.

Family history projects are not without their hazards, and a cheery invitation to sleuth into secrets could create difficulties in families where all is not sweetness and light. For imaginative suggestions for learning about family, and sensible, practical details of how to carry out the research, however, The Family Tree Detective has much to offer. The wide age range of the book’s intended audience means that instructions vary in the level of difficulty and assumed ability, but most activities are well explained.