Kingfisher vs. Usborne Celebrity Death Match

[craft_media_hero]

Which encyclopedia would win, and why?

I'd like to order dd some science and history encyclopedias, and I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed, so to moms who have used both and/or either, what do you like?

Could you recommend specifics, like Usborne has a great ____ resource but KF's _____ is awesome?

Any tips or BTDT experience appreciated, thanks!

[lach]

I love both. I don't think that you can go wrong with either. However, I feel that Kingfisher is slightly more sophisticated, and I love it a little more.

On the other hand, for a slightly younger student I might go with Usborne, because I do find it slightly less sophisticated and that's not always bad. Totally depends on the audience.

[annettemarie]

No opinion, but loving the title.

[lmonter]

Yeah, love the title of the thread. I had to explain to my mom why I busted up laughing.

We have the big Usborne one (purple hard cover), and my 6yo will take it to bed and read it for his quiet reading time after I tuck in the kids. I think we'd flipped through half that sucker in the first two weeks we had it since my 6yo and 4yo were so enthralled and intrigued with the photos and such. They keep flipping through it here and there as well, so I'm calling it good.

[babycarrier]

I love your title. Can you get them from the library? I currently have a couple checked out and trying to figure out which to add to our home library. Right now I'm enjoying Usborne internet linked World history for a range of topics and Kingfisher Medieval World for a little more in depth. The internet linked pages are really cool in Usborne and I have a tendency to get lost on some great tangents through there.

Also, some I have found are more appealing to me and the kids can take it or leave it which is why I like the library option.

[dotnetdiva]

I like both. For my daughter I'm just reading the Usborne one right now. Generally, people recommend the Usborne for younger grades, and the Kingfisher starting for grades 4+.

I also like the internet links from the Usborne version. It also has an extensive prehistory section that we spent an entire summer studying.