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Utterly bonkers and enormously fun for all that, full of wackiness, crazy inventions, tight corners and one seriously big (and invisible) problem to solve, The Genius Factor: How to Capture an Invisible Cat by Paul Tobin (@PaulTobin) with illustrations by Thierry Lafontaine (@ThierryArt) has had me and my eleven year old giggling with delight.

It’s a madcap tale of one bright Nate Bannister, who – rather admirably – makes a conscious effort to keep his life interesting; every Friday the 13th he chooses to do three things which are either a challenge or likely to bring some adventure. This year this includes creating an enormous, invisible cat who does indeed make life rather more exciting… by going on the rampage.

Fortunately Nate has a loyal friend (indeed, his only friend), Delphine, and together they try all sorts of things to stop the crazy cat from destroying their neighbourhood. Inventions galore and smart thinking abound, but it’s not at all straight forward, because the Red Death Tea Society (ominous baddies of the most evil variety, who just happen to have astonishing tea brewing skills) are set on preventing Nate and Delphine from saving the day.

This riotous book, ideal for 9-12s, celebrates being a little bit different and being curious and clever. Brilliantly, it does this with a great dose of silliness and laughter, so it always feels exhilarating and never sanctimonious. Pacey, eccentric, highly imaginative and with characters and a story line likely to appeal to both boys and girls, I’d suggest How to Capture an Invisible Cat to anyone who loves off-the-wall adventure and thinking outside the box.

There’s something very mysterious about the Red Death Tea Society and so we couldn’t resist having a go at making up some tea they might enjoy. We gathered our tea making ingredients; a mixture of warm spices (cinammon, cardomum, cloves, star anise), fresh herbs (rosemary, sage mint), citrus zest (lemon and orange) and sugar lumps, plus small muslin squares to make the teabags (alternatively you could make teabags out of coffee filters using these instructions, or be inspired by this tea bag themed pinterest board).

Deciding on tea flavours was a bit like mixing up magic potions.

Once the flavours were carefully selected, the muslin squares (about 12cm long on each side) were tied up with red thread, and a tea bag label was stapled onto the thread (using a knot to hold it in place).

M designed the logo for the teabags, but if you’d like to use them you can download them here (pdf).

Once all our teabags were ready, we made boxes for them:

(Again, if you’d like to re-use the logo, here it is in a large size, idea for using on boxes.)

We filled some our boxes up (you’d better watch out, in case you find one on your doorstep!)…

But we also had to brew some tea for ourselves:

And of course, a cup of tea without a biscuit is no good, so we made some invisible cat cookies.

Yes, you may be able to see them, but this is only because they contain that magical invisible cat de-cloaking device (spoiler alert): peanut butter. (Here’s the recipe we used.)

Whilst making tea and eating peanut butter cat biscuits we listened to:

Other activities which might work well alongside reading How to Capture an Invisible Cat include:

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Disclosure: I was sent a free review copy of this book by the publisher and this post is the final part of a blog tour that’s been travelling around the world:

Monday, March 21 — Daddy Mojo (US)

Tuesday, March 22 — Nerdy Book Club (US)

Wednesday, March 23 — Jenuine Cupcakes (US)

Thursday, March 24 — This Kid Reviews Books (US)

Friday, March 25 — Fiction Fascination (UK)

Monday, March 28 — Gobblefunked (ANZ)

Tuesday, March 29 — MumtoFive.com (ANZ)

Wednesday, March 30 — Playing by the Book (UK)

It’s unseasonably warm in my part of the world at the moment, and here at Playing by the book we’re all longing for crisp days, with snow and ice and sparkle and the sort of mint-fresh air which gives you the magical ability to breathe out puffs of microscopic diamonds. Dreaming of a proper winter, we’ve really enjoyed stepping into the world of Icelandic author and illustrator Lani Yamamoto with her new book, Stína.

Stína appears to live alone in a cabin (you can easily imagine she is a good friend of a slightly grown-up Pippi Longstocking). She’s inventive, clever, capable and resourceful, able to solve her every day problems with flair and charm. But as winter sets in, she becomes a prisoner in her own home: Stína really hates the cold and finds it ever harder to leave the warmth of her bed, even though she’s curious about the white landscape and children playing – apparently unperturbed by the bitter cold – she can see through her window.

This is a delightful tale of unexpected friendship and of being brave and imaginative enough to try doing something you couldn’t believe you could do. It’s about being a person not defined either by stereotypes (Stína has her own tool box but also sews and knits) or your own expectations of yourself (Stína is afraid of the cold, but doesn’t let it stifle her curiosity) and it is uplifting, empowering and heart-warming.

Stína is also simply but beautifully produced. A cloth cover and black line drawings enhanced by a restricted, primarily blue and green palette give this stylish book a homespun and yet stylish feel. The positive, can-do attitude of Stína, the way she makes friends and the story’s quiet exploration of the benefits of being open and brave make this a book it’s a real delight to share.

Whilst Stína is very much a story book, one of the reasons it appeals so much to all of us at Playing by the book is that it is also part activity book. There are instructions for finger knitting (an activity Stína teachers her new friends), and a hot chocolate recipe. Taking our lead from our new favourite heroine we set about trying to invent the yummiest hot chocolate ever experienced in the Playing by the Book Household.

We drew up a list of potential ingredients:

Each person got to create their own recipe using whatever they liked from the list. Rigorous taste testing was then carried out, assessing our hot chocolates, not only for general yumminess but also for interesting ingredients and unusualness.

Essentially this was like a “potions” making activity, but entirely edible (or drinkable) and with lots of lip and finger licking.

My personal favorite turned out to be a recipe using a good dash of cream and a pinch of cinnamon, though J preferred the version she created where the hot chocolate was stirred with a vanilla pod and M liked her version with a tall tower of squirty cream and lots of spices.

A simple but very satisfying after school winter activity! Indulgent and imaginative, I can only encourage you to set up your own hot chocolate testing laboratory!

Whilst empirically researching hot chocolate we listened to:

Other activities which might work well alongside reading Stína include:

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Disclosure: I was sent a free review copy of this book by the publisher.

February is Black History Month. To commemorate the contributions of African-Americans to science and innovation, we offer this list of 12 books chronicling some of their many achievements: Black Inventors.

• Jones, Ursula. 2014. The Princess Who Had No Kingdom. New York: Albert Whitman. Ill. by Sarah Gibb.

• Savage, Stephen. 2015. Supertruck. New York: Roaring Brook.

• Sayre, April Pulley. 2015. Raindrops Roll. New York: Beach Lane.

It thuds.
Makes mud.
It fills.
It spills.

It is the perfect release date (for New York weather anyway)for Meghan McCarthy's new title Earmuffs for Everyone! How Chester Greenwood Became Known as the Inventor of Earmuffs. It is amazing to think there is a history behind every object you own and wear.  Earmuffs are no exception.

Meghan McCarthy's back page note explains, "I start work on every book with a bit of free association. For Earmuffs, I started doing searches on the internet-"unique inventors," odd inventions"-until ultimately I put in the word "kid inventors."   That's when I read about Chester Greenfield, who was born in 1858.  "Mary Bells of about.com wrote,A grammar school dropout, he invented earmuffs at the age of 15 (1873).  While testing a new pair of ice skates, he grew frustrated at trying to protect his ears from the bitter cold...." Meghan McCarthy explains, "That's when I knew that Chester was going to be the topic of my next book.

The topic of the book led her to look for more information and the book starts off with an explanation of a few others that were associated with the invention of earmuffs.  However, Chester is the one given credit for the invention.  The story talks about his patent and explains what a patent is and how to get one. The people of Maine have even declared December 21 as Earmuff Day in his honor!

Here is a video clip of Maine celebrating Earmuff Day - 

Just makes you wonder about all the things you don't know about! 

Even before I had finished reading Bubble Trouble by Tom Percival to the kids I knew this was a book we were going to have LOTS of fun with.

Have you ever had great fun playing with a friend but discovered things have got out of control when you try to out-do each other? That what was a shared and enjoyable activity became something competitive and a little threatening?

Bubble Trouble explores exactly this scenario, with two best friends who like nothing more than blowing bubbles together. In their desire to blow the biggest bubble, they become very inventive but some skulduggery also sneaks in. Will their friendship survive their determination to outplay each other?

Percival’s lovely book thoughtfully and playfully explores the up- and downsides of competition and the value of teamwork. It also acknowledges that we don’t always learn from our mistakes straight away, something I haven’t seen often acknowledged in picture books. The “big issues” are hidden carefully in lots of delightfulness; the illustrations are soft and sweet, and there are lots and lots of flaps to play with. Percival has worked wonders with capturing that magic sheen of bubbles without resorting to foil or silver but rather just clever use of pastels and white.

A good-natured and honest exploration of some of the trials and tribulations of friendship, Bubble Trouble offers lots of room for discussion and a great excuse to play.

So yes, having shared Bubble Trouble lots of playing with bubbles was called for. We thought we’d try something different and so I taught the girls how to breath out bubbles, big and beautiful bubbles. Who wants to breath fire when you can breathe out bubbles?

We used this recipe to make our bubble mixture:

Once the bubble mixture was all stirred together, we left it for 24 hours. Everything I’ve read says that this stage is really important (though we haven’t checked what difference it makes ourselves).

To breathe out bubbles here’s what you need to do:

1. Dip your hands into a bowl of tap water.
2. Dip your hands into your bowl of bubble mixture. (The corn flour will probably have settled at the bottom of your mixture. This didn’t seem to be a problem)
3. Rub your palms together smoothly and slowly a couple of times.
4. Open out your hands to form a rough circle: Your fingertips and wrists/bottom of thumbs will remain touching each other, and you should see a film of bubble mixture form between your two hands.
5. Gently blow through the opening between your two hands…..
6. Gasp at your bubble blowing abilities!

You can also use this mixture to blow bubbles through a circle made using just your first finger and thumb (first make a fist, then slowly open out your finger/thumb before blowing), and also to make ENORMOUS bubbles using a home made bubble wand.

For the homemade bubble wand you’ll need two lengths of dowelling. Screw an eye screw into each end and then put a large loop of string between the two eyes. It’s helpful to add a small weight such as a threaded button or a washer onto on side of your string loop.

Dip your string into your bubble mixture (all the way, up to the start of the wooden rods), lift gently out and move the rods apart. You’ll see a film appear between the strings and then if you wave them from one side to the other you’ll create amazing bubble tunnels.

There’s nothing like a good bubble!

Whilst mixing up our bubble juice we listened to:

Other activities which you could pair with Bubble Trouble include:

What are your favourite books which feature bubbles?

Disclosure: We received a free review copy of Bubble Trouble from the publisher.

One of the best days of our school summer holiday this year was spent taking things apart and weaving other things together.

Two friends of mine are the driving force behind setting up an alternative, creative play space in my home town, and I was honoured to be a part of the team involved in testing a prototype of their PLAYLAB. The longer term project is all about taking play seriously, providing a wide range of fun opportunities to grow and develop, through engineering, digital, drama, art, and tinkering-based activities, and for one day during the summer we took over an empty shop in the local mall and turned it into a hive full of transformers and loom bandits.

Photo: Stuart Parker

We had a range of old machines to take apart with hand tools, to explore, rebuild and repurpose and a sweetie shop array of loom bands for weaving and creating.

Image: Joyjit Sarker

Image: Stuart Parker

There were also books! Books on the theory of play and practical books to inspire kids and families. One of my roles was setting up this mini tinkering/play-themed library and today I thought I’d share some of them with you. Whilst these aren’t kids’ books per se, they are definitely family books – books to share and inspire kids and their grown ups to be creative.

Cool Tools: A Catalog of possibilities by Kevin Kelly is a bizarre but ultimately enticing and fascinating curation of reviews of stuff that enable you to do, create, and explore your world.

At first I baulked at a book that essentially seemed to be a collection of themed adverts covering everything from shoes to spirituality, Velcro to vagabonding, joinery to geology; each reviews has a product photo, details of where to buy the product and the typical price of the item, followed by a review of the “tool” at hand.

But as I browsed this book (although its size and format – larger than A4 and printed on thin glossy paper – make it slightly unwieldy, this is a great book for dipping in and out of) I got sucked in and ideas for all sorts of play and creativity started flowing.

And that’s what this book sis really all about: Showing you some interesting, practical tools (both physical and digital) to enable you to see possibilities where perhaps you saw none before. It’s sparked lots of “what if?” conversations in our family, and amazed us with the range of innovative ideas out there.

On the back cover of Cool Tools it states “This book was made with the young in mind. Give a copy to a kid you know.” M (at 9) has loved this books though some families may wish to know in advance that there is a small section on ‘Psychedelics’ including marijuana, and e-cigarettes. Given the format of this book, the page concerned can easily be removed and its presence should certainly not be a barrier to you opening this book up and exploring all the possibilities it offers you.

The Art of Tinkering by Karen Wilkinson and Mike Petrich has one of the best front covers I’ve ever seen. It embodies what the book is about int he most perfect way possible: It is printed with conductive ink, allowing you to play/tinker/hack the book before you’ve even opened it.

Where Cool Tools was about products to foster doing/playing/tinkering, The Art of Tinkering is about showcasing a wide range of artists mixing technology and art, taking apart and repurposing one thing to make something exciting and new. After each artist is introduced there’s a section on “how you can tinker” in a way similar to the artist in question. Some of the suggestions need rather more equipment than just a screwdriver, glue or paint, but the ideas are innovative and inspirational, ranging from time lapse art to playdoh circuits, animating stuffed toys to sculpting in cardboard, building your own stroboscope to making clothes out of unusual materials. Whilst the book doesn’t include step by step tutorials, it is packed with practical information, presented beautifully. Nearly every page turn has resulted in “Mum, can we try that?!”

Tinkerlab by Rachelle Doorley is a compendium of “55 playful experiments that encourage tinkering, curiosity and creative thinking”, born out of the US blog with the same name, Tinkerlab. Written specifically with the 0-6 year old crowd in mind, the projects in this book are simpler and easier to set up than in some of the other books mentioned here today, and many fall into the messy play category; you might not think of them as tinkering (for example collage painting and drawing games), and yet they do all involve experimenting, exploring, testing and playing, and in that sense they could be described as ‘tinkering’. “Design”, “Build”, “Concoct” and “Discover” form the main themes of each chapter packed with clear, recipe-like guidance for the themed activities. The book is beautifully produced with a coffee table book feel and the activities are contextualised with brief essays by various play and education professionals. It’s written very much with parents in mind; Doorley is keen to encourage us all at home to make space for mess and exploration, and this book helps make it feel possible, manageable and enjoyable.

Make: is a quarterly magazine made up of a mixture of opinion pieces, detailed tutorials and artist/project biographies and write-ups. I’d gift this mind-boggling magazine to teens (or adults) who love the idea of playing and creating with technology. The projects are aimed at those who embrace electronics and gadgets and range from the practical (eg a DIY blood pressure monitor or sleep timer) to the purely whimsical, (eg moving, fire breathing sculptures or coffee shop construction toys).

Even though most of the projects in Make: are too complex for the stage me and my girls are at, we’ve oohed and ahhed our way through several issues of Make: and will be looking out for new issues.

If tinkering/hacking is something that interests you, do look out for this year’s series of Christmas Lectures from the Royal Institution. “Sparks will fly: How to hack your home” is the title for this year’s series of lectures aimed at curious kids and their families and in them Professor Danielle George will be exploring how the spark of your imagination and some twenty first century tinkering can change the world. They will be shown on BBC4 over the Christmas period, and in January 2015 on the Ri’s (free) science video channel: www.richannel.org.

My girls were away for a couple of days last week staying on their own at their grandparents and whilst I LOVED having a bit more time to myself, I couldn’t resist a special welcome home picture book party; a day spent reading, playing, eating and dancing.

On the evening they arrived home I gave them invites inspired by the artwork in The Zebra who Ran Too Fast by Jenni Desmond. Set on the African plains, this book explores rings of friendship, how they can break and make up again – a simple, kind and non-threatening exploration of a situation many children find themselves in at one time or another. Desmond’s use of muted stone and moss colours is stylish, and the illustrations feel loose and free with lots of “scribbles” and splashes.

I used Desmond’s sun motif to form the basis of the party invites; a round piece of watercolour paper with flamecolour centre, surrounded by drops of ink, blown outwards using a straw.

Whilst I made these invites, the process is definitely easy enough for kids to enjoy too (if you’re worried about kids drinking up the paint/ink accidentally you could use food colouring instead).

The following morning we started as we meant to go on. We made vanilla ice cream (without a freezer) and tested different vanilla flavoured icecreams to discover our favourite. This was inspired by Vanilla Ice Cream by Bob Graham. Graham is THE master of global perspective. He knows how to zoom in and out of scenes and stories like no other teller of tales I know, and once again he works wonders with this understated story, following a sparrow who hitches a lift on a cargo ship. Masterful picture books often include a clever “reveal” in their final pages, so I should have known something was coming. Still, I was taken by great (and joyous) surprise with the twist Graham pulls off in this colourful, delightful story endorsed by Amnesty International.

To make icecream without a freezer you need cream, sugar, icecubes and salt. The cream and sugar go in one bag – here’s the cream, sugar (and vanilla in our case):

And below you can see it having frozen; the cream-containing bag is put inside a larger bag full of ice and salt. Because salt lowers the freezing temperature of water, the icecubes melt, extracting heat from the cream as they do so. After about 5 minutes shaking the icecubes were mostly melted and the cream mixture was like soft icecream.

And here’s the final result – definitely the most luxurious vanilla icecream I’ve ever eaten!

For full details on how to make your own icecream without a freezer and in under 10 minutes, do take a look at these instructions from the National STEM centre.

I love a good book about books and storytelling and Herve Tullet has created a mischievous and inventive interactive piece of theatre exploring story characters, plot and the need for a title in his Help! We Need a Title!. A motley collection of characters are in need of a good storyline and a punchy title. They appeal directly to you the reader/listener for help. With plenty of surprises this book is lively and highly amusing.

If you like the sound of Tullet’s book do look for Do not open this book by Michaela Muntean, illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre, one of the funniest books in our home – an absolute must-have for families who like a bit of interaction with their books and harbour dreams of writing stories.

Taking our lead from characters who walked in and out of the pages of Help! We Need a Title! I set up a book “stage” with the help of the patio doors, a basket of dressing up costumes and a selection of liquid chalk markers (you could also use whiteboard markers).

My girls love drawing on photos in newspapers and magazines so it was a natural extension that we then drew “on” the characters who walked into our patio-door picture-book.

And finally the contents of our picture book were included too.

After lunch, for some chill-out time, we got out good old staples: lego and the wooden railway, this time brought to life by Bruno and Titch: A Tale of a boy and His Guinea Pig by Sheena Dempsey. Bruno has always wanted a guinea pig. Titch, a guinea pig, has always wanted to be taken home from the pet shop by a Big Person. One day their paths cross – but does it work out how they’ve each always imagined it would? Deadpan guinea pig humour (yes, really!) and fabulous illustrations full of new details upon each reading add something special to this tale about friendship, imagination and looking after pets. We especially loved Bruno’s passion for invention, right down to the poster of Einstein by his bed.

Our interpretation of Bruno and Titch’s lego/railway play:

No party is complete without dancing, so following a reading of Frances Dean who Loved to Dance and Dance by Birgitta Sif we cleared the kitchen to create space for a good old boogie, aided by a prop or two.

Put your cynical adult brain to one side and remember a time when the phrase “dance like no-one’s watching” felt like something utterly joyous and liberating. Sif’s book is all about holding on to that freedom and not being afraid of a little bit of exuberance mixed in with a good shot of rhythm. It’s an encouraging story about holding on to what you care about, even when others seem to doubt you, a message I think every child deserves to hear time and time again.

For a book bursting with so much heart and happiness, the colour scheme is particularly interesting; there are lots of natural greens and browns rather than the bright sparkly jewel tones often used by illustrators to convey intense happiness. For me this speaks of the impact being connected to the outdoors can have on feeling content and happy; indeed all of the scenes showing Frances Dean dancing take place in parks and forests surrounded by space, trees and wildlife.

We reused embroidery hoops and ribbons to create waves of colour we could dance with.

Jumping for joy? Yes, that pretty much sums up our 2014 Picture Book Party An all day festival of playing and reading – just what summer holidays are made for.

Disclosure: All the books featured in this picture book party were sent to me a free review copies by the Walker Books, as part of the Picture Book Party blog tour. See how how more families have been partying at the following stops on the tour: 26 August: www.mummymishaps.co.uk, 27 August: www.culture-baby.net, 28 August: www.theboyandme.co.uk and 29 August: www.beingamummy.co.uk

Title: The Tweedles Go Electric Written by Monica Kulling Illustrated by Marie Lafrance Published by Groundwood Books, February 2014 Ages: 5-8 Themes: electric cars, early 20th century, historical fiction, inventions Opening sentences: The Tweedles don’t own a car. People think they’re behind the … Continue reading →

This book will appeal to middle grade readers who like stories about inventions, airplanes, famous people, overcoming difficulties, and life in earlier times.

I first reviewed The Secret Science Alliance on 12/16/09 when I was just delving into the world of graphic novels. In the years since, I have read and loved many graphic novels (mostly for kids) but Davis' book remains at the top of my list for story, art and complexity. A must read! The Secret Science Alliance, by Geisel Award winner (for her excellent beginning reader comic book, Stinky)

4.5 Stars  When Leonardo da Vinci, a busboy, was asked to make turtle soup one of the turtles begs for his life.  It’s Tuttle, a turtle who has lived so long he evolved into an independent thinking and speaking mastermind.  Tuttle tries to convince Leonardo that there is a big world out there, and he [...]

As National Science and Engineering Week draws to a close, I have a second inventions book to share with you: See Inside Inventions by Alex Frith, illustrated by Colin King.

We are massive fans of the Usborne Flap Book series, to which this is the latest addition. They are robust (great for in classrooms, or for when your kids fight over them, as ours do), they are hugely informative, they are exciting to read, and they’re just lovely to look at.

In fact, I think there’s a lot to be said for flaps. They draw out curiosity (who wouldn’t want to know what is hidden behind a flap), they introduce drama to reading (what’s going to be revealed…?) and they keep hands busy (great if your reader isn’t one who likes to sit still), so See Inside Inventions was already looking like a winner, even before we started reading.

And when we did start reading, we loved the book even more: It’s always exciting to read a book and feel you’ve learned lots of interesting things.

To see if See Inside Inventions might be a book for you, why not take this mini quiz and see what you might learn?

4 Comments on Lifting the flap on inventions, last added: 3/17/2012

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se7en said, on 3/16/2012 2:40:00 PM

Finally getting to read my feeds for the day – head straight to “books” and there you are… This book looks fab – I have glanced at this series but only briefly… (Our library seems to be getting heaps of sort of pink girl series about nothing at the moment and no cool fact books… oh to live in the same country as usborne books!!!)… I know the tin can telephone works… my kids make then with anything container-ish – even paper cups… we have a tall tree at the gate that they climb and it is level with their bedroom about 30 meters away and they can whisper secrets to and fro – fab fun!!! And there are our rockets!!! Thank you – so glad you liked them!!!
se7en recently posted..Se7en Make Mini Hobby Horses…

Zoe said, on 3/17/2012 1:32:00 AM

Ha! I can just imagine your kids with their telephones Se7en. So do Usborne not distribute in SA? I’m a bit surprised by that…
Zoe recently posted..Kidlit radio #10

Elli said, on 3/17/2012 3:55:00 AM

Good excuse to make lots of sticky syrup cakes!
My Child3 taught himself to read largely from ‘How Things Work’ in this series – really good to see another one out. I hope it’s been better edited than the others though, as some of them seem riddled with niggling errors.
Elli recently posted..Going Up the Hill

Zoe said, on 3/17/2012 3:58:00 AM

That’s interesting to hear Elli – I haven’t noticed any errors, but then I’m reading stuff that is by and large new to me. What sort of errors were you finding?
Zoe recently posted..Kidlit radio #10

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15. How to foster a budding inventor

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By: Zoe, on 3/8/2012
Blog: Playing by the book (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Being independent, History, Science, Inventions, Add a tag

Today sees the start of National Science & Engineering Week in the UK. I’ll be celebrating it with books of course, and so the focus for the next couple of posts here on the blog is… INVENTIONS!

This afternoon I’m in school doing a book+craft session based on Wouter van Reek‘s Coppernickel: The Invention. After reading the book together, the kids and I will be making our own inventions using the piles and piles of recycling I’ve been hoarding since Christmas. I’ll be letting each of them loose with a roll of masking tape and asking them to invent something they’d like to see in their school. Should be chaotic and fun! To give you a flavour of the book you might enjoy this animation based on it:

At home this week, however, we’ve been reading Usborne’s The Story of Inventions, by Anna Claybourne, illustrated by Adam Larkum and designed by Steve Wood.

With the look and feel of a notebook full of doodles and scribbled notes on ideas (just the sort of thing a budding inventor might carry around to record their bright ideas in), The Story of Inventions covers everything from aeroplanes to zips, writing to radar, and candles to crisp bags, looking at how they were invented, who came up with the idea, and how the ideas developed.

This is a book that makes you want to read it! Every page has a fascinating story on it; you’ll meet characters who were often either slightly crazy, or incredibly bright, or just plain brave. You’ll learn new words (eg celerifere, Gossamer Condor), you’ll learn about history, and you’ll end up looking afresh at the things around you which we often take for granted nowadays.

There are no long chunks of text in this book; rather, there are lots of short paragraphs of just a sentence or two. And everywhere you turn there are fun illustrations (drawings, rather than photographs) of inventions (some look like simplified technical drawings, others show the invention in development or use).

Content, illustration and design all add up to a book M has returned to again and again. I’ll certainly be recommending it to school, and especially for older kids who may be a little reluctant to read for pleasure.

Having

3 Comments on How to foster a budding inventor, last added: 3/9/2012

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STEM Friday « Practically Paradise said, on 3/9/2012 5:00:00 AM

[...] Zoe Toft has a review of  The Story of Inventions, by Anna Claybourne, illustrated by Adam Larkum and designed by Steve Wood, but mentions a couple of other inventions/design books, plus shows her daughter making her own invention. http://www.playingbythebook.net/2012/03/09/how-to-foster-a-budding-inventor/ [...]

Library Mice said, on 3/9/2012 5:08:00 AM

How fab. The previous owners of our house had made something similar for their daughter as her room (which is now R’s) was too small for a bed and a desk. It did not however look as nice as M’s!
Library Mice recently posted..Uncover & Discover: What Will I Be?

Polly said, on 3/9/2012 5:38:00 AM

More great ideas that I shall be nicking for boy entertainment! Thanks Zoe. Speaking of nicked ideas I’m booked to go into Reception on Monday with a whole heap of vegetable matter, grains and crackers to try our hands at some Carl Warner edible landscapes…
M.’s paintwork on that table is really lovely- reminds me of Sara Fanelli’s ‘My Map Book’. Be a Proud Mummy sticker award.
Polly recently posted..Poetry Friday

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16. Edison demonstrates the phonograph

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By: Kirsty, on 12/6/2011
Blog: OUPblog (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Technology, inventions, This Day in History, thomas edison, phonograph, *Featured, higher education, this day in world history, recorded sound, edison, menlo, cranked, whom—swiss, kruesi—turned, lab—and, Add a tag

This Day in World History

December 6, 1877

Edison demonstrates the phonograph

While he cranked the handle on the device, inventor Thomas Edison watched the faces of the editors from the journal Scientific American. He was in the magazine’s offices to demonstrate one of his newest inventions. As he cranked, indentations made on a tinfoil cylinder sent signals to a diaphragm, and the editors heard the machine ask after their health. Astonished, they heard the device then say it was fine and bid them good night. “There can be no doubt,” editor Alfred Beach later wrote, “that the inflections are those of nothing else than the human voice.” The phonograph was born.

Edison had long been interested in recording information and playing it back later—his interest started back when he was working primarily on inventions related to telegraphy. By 1887, he had enjoyed enough success to create a laboratory dedicated to invention in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Edison had a large staff of scientists and technicians, one of whom—Swiss machinist John Kruesi—turned Edison’s sketches for the phonograph into a real device, reportedly in 30 hours. To test it, Edison had shouted a verse of the nursery rhyme “Mary had a little lamb” into the machine. As hoped, his recorded voice could be heard, as clearly as he had spoken.

Excited by the invention, Edison began to promote it vigorously, and the visit to Scientific American was part of his campaign. The journal published Beach’s glowing account of the demonstration on December 22. The inventor wrote an article for the North American Review speculating on the possible uses for the machine that was published the following spring, by which time he had already formed a company to manufacture phonographs. Whenever visitors came to the Menlo Park lab—and Edison encouraged them to come—he made sure to show them the phonograph, which he called his “baby.”

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17. Dirigibles, cartier watches and zappy zoomers

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By: Zoe, on 11/6/2011
Blog: Playing by the book (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  History, Nonfiction, Science, France, Nonfiction Monday, Inventions, Flying, Construction, Add a tag

If I were to ask you who was the inventor of human flight, how would you answer? Would you rack your brain for school memories and then come up with the Wright brothers? Would you be surprised and interested if you then found out that perhaps it wasn’t the Wright brothers after all, but someone else entirely?

The Fabulous Flying Machines of Alberto Santos-Dumont by Victoria Griffith, illustrated by Eva Montanari is one of the most enjoyable nonfiction picture books I’ve read this year and it tells the story of one Alberto Santos-Dumont, a Brazilian living in Paris at the turn of the 20th century, who, it turns out, has a very good claim on being the inventor of the airplane.

Alberto Santos-Dumont, inspired by a childhood passion for Jules Vernes, was crazy about inventing flying machines. He was famous across Paris for his preferred mode of city transport – his own private airship, a dirigible, which he used like an airborne taxi to take him to cafes and shops around town. But like many inventors Santos-Dumont didn’t sit still; he was knew “even the best inventions can be improved” and so he set about designing an airplane.

One chilly morning in November 1906, on the outskirts of Paris, Santos-Dumont promised to make the world’s first public airplane flight. Things didn’t get off to a good start when a rival would-be pilot turned up with his own airplane. But when this plane failed to make it off the ground, it was Santos-Dumont’s turn….

And he was off! Although he flew for barely more than 20 seconds, Santos-Dumont became the first person to lift off and land a completely self-propelled plane. Santos-Dumont was of course delighted: “these machines will mean the end of all wars. Once people are able to fly to different countries, they will see how much we have in common. We will all be friends.”

Victoria Griffith must have been jumping with delight as she gradually learned about Alberto Santos-Dumont; what better hero for a story could there be? He was a larger-than-life gentleman (he gave away most of the money he earned for his inventions), an eccentric, he played an important role in a world changing invention and he left a lasting legacy that you may well have heard of, even if you didn’t associate it with Alberto or had never knowingly heard his name before (there’s a clue in the picture below, but I’ll leave it for you to read the book to enjoy the story associated with it!)

Now it’s one thing to unearth a great story waiting to be told, but it’s quite another to weave it all together to create a narrative that grabs you from the outset, captures your imagination and makes you want to know more about the facts in question. Griffith does all of this perfectly, showing us a very important scientific truth along the way – that facts are often far more complicated than the received wisdom about them.

Eva Montanari’s illustrations, with e

1 Comments on Dirigibles, cartier watches and zappy zoomers, last added: 11/8/2011

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Concetta at Glittering Shards said, on 11/7/2011 1:43:00 PM

Gotta try those! Am now browsing your site for Christmas present inspirations!

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18. Imaginative Inventions - a review

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By: shelf-employed, on 8/8/2011
Blog: Shelf-employed (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  history, rhyming, book review, nonfiction, inventions, Non-Fiction Monday, picture books for older readers, inventors, Add a tag

Harper, Charise Mericle. 2011. Imaginative Inventions: The who, what, where, when, and why of roller skates, potato chips, marbles, and pie and more! New York: Little Brown.

Cherise Mericle Harper is the author of the very popular Just Grace and Fashion Kitty series, as well as one of my personal favorites, Pink Me Up. In Imaginative Inventions, she turns her talented hand to nonfiction.

In 3-6 paragraph rhymes, she features the history of fourteen inventions, including  doughnuts, high-heeled shoes, eyeglasses and animal cookies.  The "Piggy Bank" was a particularly interesting invention,

In the Middle Ages
pots were made from pygg.
It was an orange clay
that wasn't hard to dig.

When someone had some money
to save or hide away,
they kept it in their pygg jar
for a future rainy day.

Some potter probably said,
after giving it some thought,
"What if I take my fine pygg clay
and make a pig-shaped pot?"

Well, soon the other potters
who formed and shaped the clay
were making jars in piggy shapes
just like they do today.

Humorous, brightly-colored acrylic paintings accompany each entry, and are a mixture of folk art, caricature and comic styles.  The double spread illustrations are framed on three sides by a quilt motif of related illustrations (shoes, doughnuts, etc.) and the fourth side has a border featuring facts - Who, Where, When, and more.

Sources are not included, however, Imaginative Inventions is not intended as a research tool, but more as a source of fun or an introduction to inventions.  Many teachers assign projects on inventors.  This would be a fun read-aloud to inspire further investigation.

Visit Cherise Mericle's great website!

(I can't wait to see her upcoming book If Waffles Were Like Boys - what a great title!)
Another review @ Rasco from RIF

Today is Nonfiction Monday and the host is Apples with Many Seeds.

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Anonymous said, on 8/8/2011 10:08:00 AM

This sounds great.
Thanks for taking part in today's Nonfiction Monday event.
Tammy
Apples with Many Seeds

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19. Sparks - What will you invent with yours?

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By: Sparkz, on 4/18/2011
Blog: PS4K - Poems and Stories 4 Kids (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  kids, poetry, illustrated, poems, childhood, inventions, inspiring, think, blinkabugs, children, Add a tag

Kinda cool to think that nearly everything in the world started as a spark in someone's head. What will you create with your sparks?

Tell us about the fantastic-futuristic inventions you're planning to unleash on the world when you get older...

The Sparks Question Mark

(Can you find everything from the poem represented in The Sparks Question Mark?)

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20. Extension units

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By: Mattias Adolfsson, on 3/8/2011
Blog: Mattias (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Can be handy when you run out of limbs.

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Dzhony_df said, on 3/8/2011 4:40:00 AM

cool!

serni said, on 3/8/2011 5:02:00 AM

all practical!
:-)

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21. Meanwhile: Pick any Path. 3,856 Story Possibilities, by Jason Shiga

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By: Stacy Dillon, on 2/13/2011
Blog: Welcome to my Tweendom (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Science Fiction, Adventure, graphic novel, inventions, choose your own adventure, Abrams, 2010, copy from school library, Add a tag

I have been getting quite a few requests in the library for Choose Your Own Adventures these days.  The requests are coming from both the younger and the older set, which is pretty interesting to me.  One of the bolder of these that I am giving to the older kids is Meanwhile, by Jason Shiga.

Chocolate or Vanilla?  This choice will sets off an adventure involving quantum physics, inventions, and entropy among other things.  Our young ice cream fan needs a bathroom, and finds one in a lab where he gets the privilege of testing out some inventions (which ones are entirely up to you!). 

Differing from the typical Choose Your Own Adventure, this is in no way a linear journey.  Readers get to the next segment of the story by following a series of pipes up, down, back and forth and occasionally through a tangled up maze to get to the next segment of the story.

Now, I in no way made it through all 3856 options, but you know what?  I know *several* kids who will take the time and the renewals that it will take in order to do it!  Shiga has a gift for making the uber scientific concepts accessible to kids (and adults) who may not know what things like entropy really mean coming into Meanwhile.

The format is great.  Laminated pages will hold up to all of the back and forth that the pages need to have to make the story work, and the explanation of how the book works is very clear.  This is a great book to gift to someone as they will return to it again and again, even if they only have "10 minutes" to get some reading in.  Meanwhile was recently listed in YALSA's Top Ten Great Graphic Novels for Teens, and I will extend the category to include the tweens as well!

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22. A Virtual World

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By: Claudette Young, on 10/25/2010
Blog: Claudsy's Blog (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  virtual reality, holography, transporters, Life, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Writing and Poetry, inventions, Add a tag

Writers live in their own little worlds much of the time. Hey, I can’t help it if everyone can’t find the time to work and play the way we do. Our minds think up so many fantastic scenarios. And SF writers think up some doozies that have stuck with us as everyday objects in our homes.

Those SF writers do the mental designs, write them down, creating written Virtual Worlds for any reader who picks them up to read. Afterwards, they have the privilege of sitting back and seeming smug when the world takes hold of one of their ideas and makes it tangible and available.

I find myself mind-boggled when I think about how much has been created in the name of using one’s mind. Billions in research has gone toward producing a viable Virtual World application that can be enjoyed by the masses.

For instance: The Air Force put together a specialized helmut a bunch of years ago that would allow the pilot to simply think about a maneuver and have his plane perform it. It was tested and found plausible and usable if the pilot was specially trained to use it. And before you wonder how I know that, I saw a documentary on it several years ago and leave it at that. Nothing classified here. It came from SF.

Serious talk had it that the military purchased the rights to quite a few of the designs and concepts used on the original Star Trek series. Researchers are reportedly working on several applications taken from the Star Trek series. When Next Generation warped out to the Rim, the concepts and designs used were sold off, or so the story goes.

Japanese researchers have been working on a working holographic TV since the 80’s as reported on the Discovery channel during ‘88-‘89 or thereabouts. They’d managed it, too. A research facility in California reported a few years ago about having actually “transported” an inanimate object from Point A to Point B without inherent damage to the object. That’s impressive.

So here we have transporters, holo deck capability (at least up to a point), other researchers are working on replicators with some success, and one engineer has figured out how to build a hydrogen collecting ram-jet (if I heard what he said correctly on the Science Channel.) Think about it. We’re almost to and point of creating an Enterprise to rival the UFoP.

Nanotechnology is ready to explode. It’s being tested now for medical applications. I think it was AP that reported that a few months back.

I know that you’re wondering what all that has to do with a Virtual World. Well, it’s like this. When I was a kid, everyone under the age of 18 lived in a virtual world as routine. It was called an imagination. We figured out everything. I think I was 11 when I figured out how to biuld everything I could think of, including a pedal car, out of various diameter bamboo.

Gilligan’s Island did that, you say. That’s true. They did. But I did it in the fifties. I didn’t know about all the SF greats at that time and had never read any of their books. I just knew that there were planets out there beyond our knowing that had intelligent life on them and that sometime before the world ended, we’d get to see them. That subject is still being debated.

Kids back then all knew how to make up stories and see them in their heads. As far as we were concerned we really were on those other planets, in that hot desert looking for a watering hole, or designing a new two story house from whatever we could find on the forest floor.

Today, kids have video games that present images that might as well be real. Many are violent. All I’ve heard are loud enough to wake several zombies and send them out on the street to get away from the noise.

The idea of actually thinking up their own stories and games seems to have escaped many of the last two generations of children. I wonder if we’ve paid too heavy a price for the actual reality of virtual reality.

Would it have been so terrible to leave our children to the devices of their own imaginati

4 Comments on A Virtual World, last added: 10/26/2010

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Yaya said, on 10/25/2010 11:08:00 PM

Great post. It is sad that so many of our children have been lulled into tradin’ away their creative abilities. When I think of how much fun it was to be whoever I wanted to be an’ live whatever life I wanted to live, I hurt for those who have never experienced that same kinda’ joy.

~ Yaya

claudsy said, on 10/26/2010 10:08:00 AM

Sad, too, Yaya, that it’s deliberate. Just because something is COOL doesn’t always mean that it’s without major long-term flaws.

Claudsy

DrPKP said, on 10/26/2010 2:39:00 PM

Clauds

Yes! It is true as you say that in the not so distant past all children lived in a ‘virtual’ world it was called ‘imagination.’ There are some…including noted child psychologist Piaget who postulated that children’s play including imaginative play is essential for psychological and cognitive development. Pa…ckaged virtual realities although they may provide excitement are foisting another’s sense of directed “imagining” on the children who play … and although perhaps there is a form of creativity involved in problem solving in video game… it is simply that problem solving rather than utilization of a child’s unique imagination and his or her own magical virtual reality. Important article, that is not addressed often enough!

claudsy said, on 10/26/2010 3:44:00 PM

I figured Dr. Pearl wouldn’t be able to pass this one by. I miss those times when the movie inside one’s head was something original, not a cheap knockoff of an earlier movie filmed by someone else.

Claudsy

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23. Robots in the rain

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By: Zoe, on 10/17/2010
Blog: Playing by the book (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Mending/recycling, Cleaning, Inventions, Chris Riddell, Tidying, Robots, Add a tag

Photo: laffy4k

Autumn has arrived with a vengeance in our part of the world. Jumping in puddles is fun, but we’ve had a few days where venturing outside has been the last thing we wanted to do.

Still, when you’re stuck indoors it can be extra cozy and extra inviting for an additional story or two on the sofa. And so it was we picked up Wendel’s Workshop by Chris Riddell from our most recent library pile.

Wendel is an inventor. He’s creative and cute but he doesn’t cut it when it comes to tidying up, so he hits on the solution of creating a robot to keep his workshop in order. The prototype, Clunk, doesn’t work very well; clothes get folded into knots and teacups are cleared up into the sock drawer. Before long, this first robot is consigned to the scrap heap.

Photo: smpl.co.uk

Wendelbot is the inventor’s second attempt at a machine to help him keep the workshop clean. Unfortunately the Wendelbot seems to suffer from some cross wiring and his idea of tidying up is yet more destructive. Even Wendel himself is seen as something which needs tidying up and after being captured by his creation, Wendel is thrown out as rubbish.

Clunk and Wendel hear the continued sounds of destruction in the workshop. They join forces and use what is around them – piles of previously discarded junk – to create a new army of robots with which to face the Wendelbot. When the two sides eventually meet there are scenes of chaos as the Wendelbot persists in tidying whilst Wendel, Clunk and their entourage attempt to un-tidy at the same rate. This frenzied activity causes the Wendelbot to overheat and explode, creating the biggest mess yet.

Faced with a huge amount of tidying up Wendel realises that things don’t need to be tidied to perfection – things can be “good enough”.

Not everything worked perfectly… but Wendel didn’t mind. He just smiled, patch this, mended that and made adjustments here and there.

But there was one thing he didn’t do…

Wendel NEVER threw anything on the scrapheap again.

A modern take on “make do and mend”, Riddell tells a story that we all need to hear and heed. The message could be preachy, but instead is full of humour and good will. The illustrations are deliciously detailed, down to the last screw.

As someone who herself practises the “good enough” method when it comes to tidying up (with a husband who’d prefer something a little more… shall we say rigorous in its approach) this book had huge appeal to me. M and J loved the idea of inventing and thought the robots were great fun. We’ve giggled a-plenty on the sofa with this book in our

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sandhya said, on 10/17/2010 8:14:00 PM

We loved the Ottoline Series by Chris Riddell- Ottoline and the yellow cat, Ottoline at school and Ottoline at sea. Wonderful.
We have a festival of lights which comes in late Oct-early Nov called Diwali. The dates shilft as our festivals follow the lunar calendar. At this time, we light lamps all over the house, on the terrace, porch, etc., as well as hang a paper lantern outside the door. As children, we would make a bamboo frame for it, and stick coloured paper on it, decorating it with silver /golden paper. This excercise required a collossal amount of glue, and we would make this at home. We mixed wheat flour with water till it had a runny consistency, and whe goo was cooked till it thickened a bit, and was sticky. This could be used even when cool, though we had to keepit covered lest it dried up on the top. Non-toxic, edible glue, used by kids of all ages without fear of what would happen if they injested it!

Bernadette said, on 10/17/2010 10:21:00 PM

Would you believe that Chris Riddell has actually visited a school in Cairo that I worked for?! His brother (a teacher) is a dear, dear friend of mine and the walls of his house are covered with Chris’ illustrations. Now I’m going to have to check my friend’s shelf for this one!!

Zoe said, on 10/17/2010 10:58:00 PM

Hi Sandhya,
Yes, I think might try Ottoline soon – am I right in thinking they’re aimed at slightly older kids?
The glue sounds great – would you (your mum) cook it on the hob in a pan to thicken it up?
Diwali is widely celebrated here too – in fact I just saw a poster yesterday for a city council sponsored event at the end of the month and I thought M might enjoy going to it, especially after the success of our “trip” to India.

Zoe said, on 10/17/2010 11:00:00 PM

Wow Bernadette, that is very cool! Yes, do see if you can track down a copy to borrow – it’s a great book.

sandhya said, on 10/17/2010 11:20:00 PM

You’re right about Ottoline. I think it’s for 8+. A enjoyed the books.
Yes, the glue would be cooked on a hob in a pan. In fact if it thickens too much, just add water- and keep stirring so that it doesn’t burn, and to prevent lumps.
Pardon the many typos in my previous comment!

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24. Drawing tools while waiting

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By: Mattias Adolfsson, on 10/5/2010
Blog: Mattias (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Inventions, Drawing, Add a tag

and listening to a lecture on the Mongol empire.

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soniade said, on 10/5/2010 7:22:00 AM

:)

ElizT said, on 10/5/2010 12:07:00 PM

Fine baroque technology,the knife severely elegant as is fitting, but were there any Mongolian ponies?

Fabian said, on 10/5/2010 4:38:00 PM

Beyond amazing art!! Love your blog, i am happy that i found it! I will follow you! :)

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25. All Aboard! Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine

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By: shelf-employed, on 10/4/2010
Blog: Shelf-employed (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  trains, inventions, Non-Fiction Monday, picture books for older readers, Underground Railroad, bio, inventors, E, African Americans, history, nonfiction, Add a tag

Kulling, Monica. 2010. All Aboard! Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine. Ill. by Bill Slavin. Ontario, CA: Tundra.

One of the things that I love about reviewing children’s nonfiction is the number of new things that I learn every day.  Today I learned a little-known, but interesting and inspirational life story, as well as an interesting tidbit of etymology, the origin of the phrase “the real McCoy.”

Get on Board!

we hear our conductor
singing low
the song she uses
to let us know
now is the time
to get on board...

the midnight train
runs underground
we hide and pray
not to be found
we risk our lives
to stay on board...

So begins All Aboard! But All Aboard! is not the story of the Underground Railroad, rather it is the culmination of the Underground Railroad's greater purpose - a self-determined, productive life, lived out in  freedom.  Elijah McCoy was the son of slaves who escaped to Canada on the Underground Railroad. His determined and hardworking parents saved enough money to send Elijah to school overseas, where he studied to become a mechanical engineer. 

He returned in 1866 to join his family in Michigan.  Though he may have been free, his opportunities were not equal.  Despite his education, he was only able to secure work as an "ashcat," feeding coal into the firebox of a steam engine for the Michigan Central Railroad,

What a letdown! Elijah knew engines inside and out.  He knew how to design them.  He knew how to build them.  He also knew the boss didn't think much of him because he was Black.  But Elijah needed work, so he took the job. 

Still, Elijah persevered in his job while his mind, trained in engineering, sought to find a solution to the miserable job of "grease monkey," the boys (including Elijah) who oiled all of a train's gears when they frequently seized up due to friction and lack of lubrication.  Trains of the time were typically stopped every half hour or so for greasing.  After several years, Elijah invented (and patented) an oil cup, which was used successfully  to keep the trains running.  Travel by train became faster, safer, and more efficient.  He continued to invent throughout his life, eventually filing 57 patents!  Others tried to copy Elijah McCoy's oil cup, but none were able to match his success. 

When engineers wanted to make sure they got the best oil cup, they asked for the real McCoy.

All Aboard! Elijah McCoy's Steam Engine is an obscure but inspiring story, made particularly poignant by the juxtaposition of his parents' Underground Railroad experience, and his own experience working for the Michigan Central Railroad.  The dialogue is invented and there are no references cited, however, the engaging story is simply told in a manner that makes complex topics like the inventive process and racism accessible to young readers.  All Aboard! is short enough that it can easily be read aloud to a classroom or storytime for older children.

 The book's pen and watercolor illustrations are colorful, and full of life and expression; the reverse side of the dust jacket doubles as poster. The cov

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Madigan McGillicuddy said, on 10/4/2010 7:02:00 PM

It sounds like an interesting book about an interesting man. I'll have to check it out.

Thanks for participating in NonFiction Monday this week.

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