(Note: I was sent this book in exchange for a review on my blog.)

The Thinking Toolbox

Nathaniel & Hans Bluedorn

http://www.thefallacydetective.com/

I was very excited to receive this book to review. We already own The Fallacy Detective and in looking through it, I had decided to put off using it until my daughter was in grade 7-8. I felt that she needed a bit of an easier, workbooky type intro to Logic than what I saw in The Fallacy Detective. Then, I read advice posted on The Well-Trained Mind boards that The Thinking Toolbox, even though written AFTER The Fallacy Detective, was actually a better introduction to Logic because it was "fun" and so I knew then that I wanted this book!

I have NOT been disappointed in the advice that I read! This book is FUN with a capital "F!" After our first lesson, my 6th grade daughter said, "Wow! I didn't know that Logic was so interesting!" We had gone through the Orbiting with Logic series (for grades 2-6) and those workbooks were a great intro to basic concepts, but The Thinking Toolbox (for ages 12 and up) finally introduces the child to the "nitty-gritty" of how to sharpen one's reasoning skills. You can look through a sample lesson and the Table of Contents on their website - click here.

The book contains 35 lessons so a family could study this book over a year's time, but my daughter is liking it so much that she wants to complete several chapters weekly! Each lesson contains humorous examples of the topic and that really draws the child in. It makes it readable on a child's level and not "over their head." Each lesson is then followed by some great exercises to test the child's understanding of the material just covered. Answers for each lesson are in the back of the book.

Visually, I find The Thinking Toolbox more appealing to children than The Fallacy Detective. The font and layout is just more "fun." That doesn't take anything away from The Fallacy Detective, but I would probably recommend beginning with The Thinking Toolbox first with a reluctant child. Both books are written from a Christian perspective. While I have not used The Fallacy Detective, in comparing their Tables of Content, they do appear to cover different information, so I believe you really do need BOTH books to really get a good grip on Logic. The Fallacy Detective covers HOW to recognize bad reasoning, while The Thinking Toolbox helps you BUILD your reasoning skills. I know that there are more "formal" programs out there, but I think that the Christian Logic books by the Bluedorns are just the thing for a family who wants to complete a basic Logic program and have fun while doing so!

... Kris ...