The Lobster Kids' Guide to Exploring Ottawa-Hull: 12 Months of Fun!

Nikki Tate-Stratton writes novels for pre-teens; her latest books are
Jessa Be Nimble, Rebel Be Quick; Raven’s Revenge; and Tarragon Island.

The Lobster Kids’ Guide to Exploring Vancouver is just one of several
guidebooks for Canadian cities published by Lobster Press. Each is well
organized and clearly written, and includes a broad selection of
activities and destinations suitable for a range of budgets, interests,
and ages.

Destinations are organized in sections like “Museums,” “Places to
Play,” “Historical Sites,” “Animals, Farms, and Zoos,” and
“Music, Theatre, Dance and Cinema.” For locals looking for unusual
outings, there are lots of ideas in the “In Your Neighbourhood”
chapter. Where appropriate, each listing includes an overall rating
(one, two, or three lobsters) based on several factors: how enjoyable
the site is for children, learning opportunities provided, accessibility
to a central location, and value-for-money.

Symbols provide information on parking, toilets, proximity to public
transport, birthday party facilities, stroller/wheelchair accessibility,
and so forth. Web sites, addresses, and phone numbers are also easy to
find. Seasons, times, costs, and directions for getting to each site are
easily spotted in a sidebar. Detailed entries describe what to expect,
features appealing to children of different ages, information on special
events, educational opportunities, and special facilities for groups and
birthday parties. Nearby attractions are also noted to help families
plan the day.

In addition to those sites given a complete review, other similar
attractions are listed at the end of relevant chapters (e.g., a dozen
small and specialty museums are included at the end of the “Museums”
section in the Vancouver volume). Written by parents who have kid-tested
the attractions listed, these guides are both handy (large pocket books)
and comprehensive.

Unfortunately, the index is actually a series of entries broken down
into broad categories like “Birthday Parties” and
“Workshops/Camps/Programs.” This is very handy as a cross-reference
but not very helpful if the reader is looking for a quick reference to a
particular attraction. This is, however, a minor complaint about an
otherwise well-produced series chock-full of truly useful information.