Booklist

With obesity skyrocketing in the U.S. among young people as well as adults, this addition to the Compact Research: Current Issues series will attract teens driven by both research assignments and personal interest. The browsable text is packed with snippets of up-to-date facts; clear, full-color diagrams; and quotes from a wide range of authorities, who discuss health consequences, treatment, prevention, and causes, including the degree to which genetics, social class, and personal choices influence body weight. Full back matter, including citations for the abundant quotes and an annotated list of key people and advocacy groups, provides sturdy support for this timely overview. This provides a nice, research-based backbone to accompany such titles as Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the American Meal (2001) and Scott Ingram’s Want Fries with That? (2005). — Hazel Rochman