Bodies from the Ice by James M. Deem

Image Credit: www.barnesandnoble.com

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Deem, James. 2008. Bodies from the Ice: Melting Glaciers and the Recovery of the Past. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. ISBN 9780618800452

2. PLOT SUMMARY
What did people look like hundreds or thousands of years ago? What did they eat, and what did they do? Scientists have given us some answers to some of those questions. James Deem, author of Bodies from the Ice, describes how some of the best answers have recently been revealed from deep within the ice. Rapidly melting glaciers are uncovering frozen bodies that have been trapped within thick glaciers for centuries and even millenniums. Readers will meet Otzi, the oldest mummified body, and frozen children that were sacrificed by their own community. Additional bodies, tools, clothing, coins, figurines, and other artifacts that have finally surfaced from this frozen world are also featured, and the history behind them are covered within the book. James Deem explains why and how some items have been so well preserved and others have not. He describes the types of glaciers and the conditions of them as well as the effect they have had upon items within them. Other fascinating frozen discoveries are revealed throughout the pages of this very fascinating book.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Beginning with the most captivating story, James Deem hooks his audience in the first chapter of this book with the incredible account of how a husband and wife stumbled across a frozen human body while walking in the Alps in 1991. Later, they learned that the mummified body was more than 5,300 years old. Written for older children or teens in a clear direct voice, the second chapter covers a more extensive study of glaciers and the role they play in the discovery of other items found in glaciers all around the globe. The subsequent four chapters reveal more frozen bodies and the history relating to those people. Each page features one or more images that consist of real photographs, paintings, lithographs, and maps. All images are accompanied by informative captions and are well documented in the back of the book. Most illustrations are in color, but some are black and white. James Deem, a retired college professor, takes care to present only facts as shown in his expansive bibliography which includes museums, professors of glaciology, anthropologists, authors of similar books or periodicals, and more educational sources. James Deem encourages his readers to continue studying glaciers and the history trapped within them by providing a list of nineteen glaciers to visit in twelve different countries, and he includes a list of fourteen suggested websites to visit. Look closely. There are even water droplets in the front and back pages of the book.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Starred review in SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Deem superbly weaves diverse geographical settings, time periods, and climate issues into a readable work that reveals the increasing interdisciplinary dimensions of the sciences.”
BOOKLIST: “Heavily illustrated with historical memorabilia as well as photos of bodies, scenery, artifacts, and rather simplistic maps, this offers a lot to look at and learn about.”
Starred review in KIRKUS: "An intriguing read, complementing the author's highly commended Bodies from the Bog (1998) and Bodies from the Ash (2005), with a bonus environmental message."
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal, 2009 Honor Book

5. CONNECTIONS
• Challenge your students to explore one or more of the websites listed on page 54 and write a short paper on what they have learned.
• After previewing some of the articles or books in the bibliography on pages 55 and 56,
pick one to read to your class.
• In addition to this book, share other books by this author:
Deem, James. BODIES FROM THE BOG. ISBN 9780395857847
Deem, James. BODIES FROM THE ASH. ISBN 9780618473083