Ask Me Anything

This expansive photographic reference book is divided into broad sections, like “Space” and “Society and Culture,” with each subsection posing a specific question. “How many trees make a forest?” introduces a section on rainforests, followed by photographs, maps and facts about rainforest ecosystems. In a spread about bacteria, a checklist gives “Reasons to like bacteria” next to a wedge of blue cheese (also pictured is an unsightly reproduction of an erupting pimple). A few questions feel contrived—“What's the connection between a slug and an octopus?”—but those growing up in the age of Google will appreciate the information explosion. Ages 10–up. (July)