Making history accessible - and relevant - to young people is not always an easy task, especially when youth-friendly material is not readily available in large quantities.

A new history book by Rosemary Jones, Bermuda Five Centuries for Young People, a companion to the award-winning Bermuda: Five Centuries published in 2004, has recently been published to fill this gap. Produced by Brimstone Media Ltd and published by Panatel VDS Ltd., the hard-back children's book is available in bookshops for $48.

Created for the Ministry of Education as a resource for primary and middle school students, the bright, attractively-designed edition follows the chapter format of the adult version, but includes special features that make it adaptable to classroom use.

Key words are highlighted in the text, so that students can see them in context, and a glossary at the end of each chapter helps with comprehension of these key concepts. Also enhancing comprehension are ten questions to answer and topics to discuss. Project suggestions encourage further discovery through text and personal experience in the wider community, as does the "Find Out More" parish tour at the end of the volume.

The text is broken into blocks chronologically and thematically, encouraging young people to 'dip into' the book as well as to read an entire chapter at a time. Five colour-coded time periods are divided into four chapters each, exploring different aspects of Bermuda's social, political and economic development. A series of time lines helps place significant events in Bermuda's history in a wider context. Using contemporary illustrations, and colour wherever possible, the pages are very attractive, and help young people visualise life in the past. Following the format of the original edition allows children to find easily the corresponding chapter in the adult version for more in-depth information.

The declared intent is to present "not just a list of dates and facts to learn, but stories that tell you what it was really like to live then and about the true spirit of Bermuda." Alongside the rich and famous are the ordinary people and colourful characters that made our Island home.

"We're very proud of the book and hope it will be an extremely useful resource for teachers, parents - and especially children," said author Rosemary Jones in a press release. "The aim was to make our history really come alive for younger readers. Bermuda's story is an incredibly exciting one, full of heroes and danger, discoveries and conflict - all the stuff kids really enjoy learning about if it's presented in the right way."

Of course, the danger in simplifying something is that its treatment becomes simplistic, but for the most part, Ms Jones has avoided this. This overview of Bermuda's history, in clear, concise language will be a useful addition to any family's reference shelf.