Grade 9 Up–These revised titles, originally published in 1994, are divided into 12 chapters dealing with social, historical, and cultural topics typical of country studies. Both give significant coverage to ethnic minorities, especially Romania in its treatment of Hungarians. Although the format and abundance of photos would indicate a middle school audience, the failure of the authors to explain many terms, especially in the economics sections, results in some challenging vocabulary. There are minor factual or typographical errors in both volumes such as the assertion in Russia that the temperature in Oymyakon, Siberia drops to -160°F, when the lowest recorded temperature there is -90.4°F. A more serious problem is the authors' failure at times to distinguish between what is typical in a country's history or culture and what is similar in other areas of Europe.
