The Children’s Book Review
Published: November 1, 2013
Hardcover: 256 pages
Age Range: 10 and up
Publisher: Ripley’s Publishing (September 10, 2013)
What to expect: Fun facts, Crazy Stories, Animals, People
Looking for a conversation starter? You’ll find something in this book. Not for the faint at heart, but that is definitely the charm of this 10th edition to the bestselling annual series Dare to Look from Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
Thousands of stories and hundreds of photographs have been collected by the Ripley’s team and curated into this visually stimulating compendium of daring facts and odd realities. While a lot of the tidbits are more than shocking—yes, squeamish tummies will churn—many are downright laughable—funny ha-ha and funny peculiar—and the remaining are undeniably fascinating. Broken down into thematic chapters: 1) Believe it! 2) World 3) Animals 4) Sports 5) Body 6) Popular Culture and more; the book boasts a wide variety of facts and shockers to pique many an interest; everything from a man who attached more than 160 pegs to his face, to extreme juggling, to crocodiles eating pet dogs, and a two-headed chick. But don’t be fooled, the Ripley’s team is smart; there are even a few things for the girly-girls: a $250,000 bottle of nail polish containing 267 carats of precious black diamonds, and high-heeled shoes in quirky sculptured shapes like a partly peeled banana, to name just two.
The design and layout has the content and images strategically intertwined making certain facts and stories catch the eye and draw readers more deeply into the page, yet also allowing for pages to be scanned and digested in quick sittings. This means that both inquisitive minds and reluctant readers are catered for. The 3D interactive book app is also a nice feature that allows pages marked with the oddSCAN™ logo to be scanned for video extras—a great way to get techies to embrace the printed book and appeal to those reluctant readers again, too.
With its sturdy and appealing foil cover, this is an excellent choice for gifting to any tween, teen or adult who would “dare to look!”
DARE TO LOOK from Ripley’s Believe It or Not! on Vimeo.
Add this book to your collection: Ripley’s Believe It or Not!: Dare to Look!
For more information, visit: Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
Read our interview with the Ripley’s team.
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