Map Art Lab – A Book Review

I was recently approached by Linden McNeilly to do a review of  her newly released book, “Map Art Lab“, a collaborative effort with Jill Berry. She graciously sent me both a digital version as well as a hard copy. Right off the bat, I was impressed by the design and layout. It is a rugged softcover edition and seems to be just the right size, lending itself well to individual or classroom use.

Note: Be sure to comment below to be entered to win a free copy !

Now, as a Geography major in college, as a programmer who often uses maps in applications, and as a world traveler, I have always focused on maps as a tool. For me, the best maps are the most accurate ones, or ones that deliver the most useful information to the viewer. As one who appreciates art, but who has limited to no art talent, I never gave the art of mapping much thought. Until now.

I pretty much read through this entire book in one sitting. Then I went through a second time and a third time. I was fascinated by the incredible creativity and broad range of techniques and topics covered.

In addition, there is enough educational material in the book to satisfy even me. Time is taken to define and present important basic concepts like direction, latitude, longitude, legends, topography and scale. Modern applications like Google Earth are also touched on. But then, the fun really begins…

There are 52 projects in this book and I wish more emphasis was placed on Geography in schools so that elementary and middle school kids could devote the time to working through one of these each week over the course of a school year. Geography is a subject that is neglected in the United States, but multi-disciplinary project based learning tools like this can certainly contribute to changing that.

Highlights for me:

• “Compass Rose” – kids learn Geography, Art and Geometry in one project
• “Topo Your Nose” – an excellent exercise in understanding the three-dimensional nature of objects, not just as it related to the earth’s surface.
• “Transparent Layer Maps” – I particularly like maps where descriptions objects and symbols overlap accurate base maps.
• “The Road to Success” – a great project for kids during vacation travels, and something that will help them remember what they saw.
• “Tea-Dyed Treasure Maps”  – You can’t beat a good treasure map !
• “Scroll Through Time” – since timelines are another learning near and dear to me.
• “Personify a Place” – Love the map of Italy !
• “My Mondrian” – an artist I like and a cool, abstract view of the world.

So, now that you know how much I enjoyed this book, I can strongly recommend it. The link to purchase it from Amazon is below. Several other bloggers have participated in the review process of “Map Art Lab“. Check out this blog to see their review.

Finally, please do comment below. One winner will be chose from all of the comments to receive a free copy of the book. Get a copy for your class, your homeschool group, yourself , and continue helping kids to find joy in understanding the world they live in.