cover image Australia to Zimbabwe: A Rhyming Romp Around the World to 24 Countries

Australia to Zimbabwe: A Rhyming Romp Around the World to 24 Countries

Ruth Fitts. Love the World (SPU, dist.), $24.95 (336p) ISBN 978-0-9962495-7-7

Newcomer Fitts presents an alphabetical trip across the globe, spending time in 24 countries—one for each letter of the alphabet, except W and X (for those letters, she offers a world map with Xs demarking the nations covered in the book). Fitts begins with a rhymed overview of each nation, followed by pages dense with small photographs, information about the nation’s history and culture, links to pertinent music and videos online, suggested reading, and craft and recipe ideas. Though the enthusiasm in Fitts’s rhymes can outpace their successfulness (“Yemen hasn’t as much oil/ As other Arabian countries’ soil—/ So people mostly work in farming,/ Industry and tourist-charming”) her love of travel and world cultures is evident, and she doesn’t sidestep the colonialism and conflicts that are intrinsic to nations including Haiti, Mexico, and Vietnam. Ages 8–up. (Nov.)