Topic: Computing, Gaming & Coding

This non-fiction children’s book about computing is full of intertwining facts and illustrations and is a dip-in book that will keep readers entertained for hours.

The author summarises the long and complex history of computing, not starting with the obvious first machines of the twentieth century, but with ancient civilisations when maths and symbols were developed to enable people to calculate. Important inventions and influential people on the journey to modern computers are explained – the impact of WW2 and the race to develop technology, such as the radar or Turing’s code-breaking machine, brings us to computing in its more modern guise. The internet, social media, gaming, retailing and AI are all described and then predictions for the future are explored.

The book is divided into clear chapters, each with timelines, inventions, people and computing stories but for those who are not sure of the basic terms and functions, the introduction covers that also. Overall, this will keep older children and adults busy while thinking, ‘I didn’t know that!’ or, ‘I remember that!’ as they flick through an extremely well-researched and appealing book.