Think Like a Detective: A Kid's Guide to Critical Thinking (Adventures in Thinking) Paperback – 3 July 2023

I got this book for my Neice and even read it myself. It’s a great book that really helps kids think critically. I never had a book like this when I was young and I’m now coming up on 42. Now… I am sick of people always bringing race into it, not everything needs representation. The images are ok but triggered people are now review bombing the book. They basically want every book, every film, every piece of music and all artwork to be inclusive of everyone. That’s convoluted at the highest level. We can have books that feature all black illustrations and nothing is said, but do it with all white illustrations and everyone claims racism. It’s ridiculous. I’m am not even close to racist, I have black friends, I like black music, pop stars, actors and artists but not everything needs to be inclusive. If you want to do a book with all white illustrations, why is that a problem? If you want to do a book with all black illustrations that is totally ok as well. Not everything is about race, not everything needs to be a race war. It’s silly and sadly getting worse. Look at Harry Potter for example more so the films… All the main cast, all the Potters Weasley’s, Grainger's are all white, yet you don’t hear a peep about inclusivity, not a single word. I find it rich that people then review bomb it for no other reason than them being triggered. This world is big enough for books to feature all black or all white illustrations without this tiresome debate about inclusion. Oh and I will edit this is Amazon decide it’s too on the nose, but it’s an opinion and doesn’t mean I have it in for black people, that couldn’t be further from the truth. But we will see.

Have enjoyed watching David Pakman online for a while so bought his book for the grandchildren, oldest 11 to pass on to next, then littlest. Critical thinking is integral to education at all levels here in Scotland and elsewhere, but it doesn’t need to stop at the school gate. The presentation is clear and attractive, the text talks to the young readers and should help them to become thoughtful about the information they acquire over time. Simply encouraging kids to seek evidence when they’re not sure of something is a great start - as long as they understand not to expect evidence to support best time for bed every night! The thinly disguised “Marge”, “Ronald” (that didn’t go past the 11-year old!) and pillow salesperson add a bit of humour for the grown ups. And those who disapprove of the mild satire can just ignore the book as long as they don’t seek to prevent others from making their own minds up, like good detectives!

I have a 10year old daughter I don’t want failing into social media conspiracy theories. I want her to be armed to protect herself in a cynical world of tough competitors and bad faith actors that awaits her.We read this little book together and enjoyed it. Most importantly, it’s been a catalyst for asking questions, thinking about what reasonable and the dangers of accepting messages in blind faith. In my opinion ten is a good age to learn some of the unpleasant truths about how the world works.So I’m glad I shelled out ten quid for this book and even more that it’s started a thread of learning that will boost my daughter’s awareness when it comes to seeking clarity, accuracy and authenticity from the inevitable onslaught of misinformation that’s soon to be coming her way.

Children grow up hearing all kinds of nonsense; be it from the internet, superstitious friends or ancient texts. While not a complete panacea for dispelling these learned myths, Think Like A Detective helped my kids question their own knowledge for the first time. The road to rationalism has opened.I’ve seen other reviews questioning the reading age but my 9 year old (almost 10 - who reads English as their second language nonetheless) was able to read the book from start to finish, only having trouble with the words “Assumption”, “Trustworthy” and “Critical Thinking”.

This was a really good book for helping kids understand that not everything is what it seems. It teaches them how and why to question things and to not take people at their word. Beautiful illustrations and plenty of words on each page. 5/5 can't wait for the next book!