THE BOOK SHELF 87 



This pleasing and helpful little book is well illustrated and has an interesting 

 introduction by Brand Whitlock. 



Exercise and Review Book in Biology. By J. G. Blaisdell. World Book Co., 

 Yonkers, N. Y., 1917. 



Pages 152, of which 10 are devoted to introductory exercises (mainly 

 chemistrv), 36, 19, and 32 pages to animal, human and plant biology, respec- 

 tively, 10 are left blank for additional exercises, and 36 are devoted to reviewing. 

 There is a single 8* x 10' page provided for the record of each laboratory 

 exercise, and the materials, procedure and form of the record are in general 

 fully prescribed. A few figures are included. These are mainly of apparatus 

 to be set up, tho some are outline structural drawings, ready to be labelled. 

 Two outlines for field work are slipped in under Review Exercises at the end, 

 for observations, one on animals and the other on plants in nature. These 

 two are better than nothing at all. 



The book is an attempt to promote efficiency in the teaching of high school 

 biology by means of a complete and perfectly definite program of work for the 

 pupil from the beginning to the end of the course. In subject matter it is 

 entirely orthodox at the present time. The work outlined is excellent and 

 practical; it is time saving rather than time serving. But one may doubt 

 the adequacy of many of these pages to contain the work that a bright pupil 

 will do on some of the subjects assigned, and the five bird studies offered under 

 Animal Biology provide for no more advanced work on birds than many nature 

 study pupils will have done in the lower school grades. 



This program, like that of most high school books in biology, is drawn up for 

 city conditions, and entirely neglects the wealth of biological opportunity that 

 is available in country places. Immense city high school classes may doubtless 

 be more easily handled by such aids, and kept moving forward in lock step 

 from registration up to the Regents' Examination, which is becoming, alas, 

 ever more the chief end and aim of school life. It may be doubted whether 

 from such a cast iron mould there will be turned out those having greater 

 interest in biology, or better ability to deal with biological problems. If this 

 new vehicle be used by the teacher as a wheelbarrow to help along with his 

 burdens, rather than as an omnibus to get inside and to stay inside, then its 

 use may be productive of excellent results. J. G. X. 



