About the Author

Melvin Berger is the author of many classic LRFOs, including Germs Make Me Sick!, Oil Spills! and Why I Cough, Sneeze, Shiver, Hiccup, and Yawn, as well as other nonfiction on the Harper backlist. He lives in East Hampton, NY.

Reviews

K-Gr 2-This newly illustrated edition of Why I Cough, Sneeze, Shiver, Hiccup, and Yawn (Crowell, 1983) offers very basic explanations. In his trademark succinct style, Berger describes how automatic reflexes cause us to try to generate heat (shivering) or to get more oxygen (yawning). He also explains that the nervous system carries messages back and forth from the brain like telephone wires, and that these automatic reflexes help protect us from burning ourselves, from breathing in foreign objects, etc. In this new edition, the author suggests ways to test one's reflexes and describes "startle" reflexes and goose bumps. The writing is simple but effective, and the charming, colorful pen-and-ink and watercolors are much more detailed than the original black-and-white artwork by Holly Keller. Attractive introductory nonfiction.-Christine A. Moesch, Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, NY Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.