Tag Archive | Norway

BIG DIGS: Amazing Underground Constructions, by Kiko Sanchez (kids nonfiction picturebook)

Book cover of Big Digs: Amazing Underground Constructions, by Kiko Sanchez, translated by Marc Correa shows the White House at top, with tunnels, elevators, and several rooms in the earth beneath it.

Secret rooms,
tunnels, aqueducts –
deep below the surface!

The “Tunnel of Contents” shows a wide range of underground projects, each commanding a double-page spread in this oversized book.

From the ancient Gadara Aqueduct carrying water underground for 60 miles in 2nd century Jordan to 3D-printed habitats in caverns under the surface of Mars in the future, each project has a specific purpose.

Both the 3rd century Temple of the Feathered Serpent in Mexico and Quinta da Regaieira in early 1900s Portugal held secret ceremonial sites far below the surface.

The Seoul Subway system is the world’s largest, carrying 7 million people yearly on its 200 miles of underground tracks.

The Delaware Aqueduct carries water to New York City, while the Eastern Discharge Tunnel carries flooding rainwater away from Mexico City.

Some diagrams are so large that you need to turn the book sideways to see them, like the White House Bunker, and the Drummen Spiral where the road to a mountaintop spirals inside the mountain, leaving its trees and animals undisturbed.

By the way – did you know that the Chunnel carrying trains under the English Channel is actually 3 tunnels?

Look for this fascinating array of meticulously hand-drawn scenes with lots of facts and history at your local library https://search.worldcat.org/libraries or independent bookstore https://bookshop.org/ .

How far underground have you gone?
**kmm

Book info: Big Digs: Amazing Underground Constructions / Kiko Sanchez; translated by Marc Correa. Helvetiq, 2026. [author/illustrator https://www.tormentalibros.com/en/illustrators/kiko-sanchez] [publisher site https://helvetiq.com/us/big-digs] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher, via Publisher Spotlight.

Ballad of a Broken Nose, by Arne Svingen, translated by Kari Dickson (book review)

book cover of The Ballad of a Broken Nose, by Arne Svingen, translated by Kari Dickson. Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books | recommended on BooksYALove.com

His earbuds are filled with opera,
His neighbors are druggies and the jobless,
Just like any middle-school boy, right?

Bart does love his mum and is sure that someday she’ll be able to keep a job so they can move out of their slum apartment… not so sure about keeping away from the bullies at school.

What advice would you give Bart as he searches for his long-gone dad?

**kmm

Book info: The Ballad of a Broken Nose, by Arne Svingen, translated by Kari Dickson / Margaret K. McElderry Books, hardcover 2016, paperback 2017. [publisher site]  Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Maybe 13-year-old Bart’s opera singing talent comes from the American father he’s never seen.
Who in his Norwegian town knew that John Jones was such a common name in the world?

Maybe his mom will finally keep a job so they can move out of the slum apartments.
Why is it so hard for her to stay sober?

Maybe learning to box will keep the bullies away or impress Ada.
What made her volunteer Bart to sing at the school show?

Maybe he’ll shake his stage fright… anything can happen, right?

Middle school years are different for each person, but this translated novel shows how common some things are.