Thursday, March 6, 2014

Books for Young Inventors

This morning, temporarily deprived of my ability to continue working on digital revisions to the children's book about New Zealand that's in progress, I sat by the fire and read The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook by Eleanor Davis.  It's the story of Julian who is given the chance to be a normal person instead of a nerd when he starts a new school.  His nerdiness sneaks out despite his best efforts to blend in (lots of giggles at the start there) but then in the end, he finds friendship, a place in the world, and a way to be happily himself.  No more details. Just go read it.


If it wasn't for the fact that it is a library book, the book would have instantly received a sacred (and competitive) spot on my shelf reserved only for books that I absolutely adore and will definitely re-read again and again.  As it is, it's happily renewed, so I can read it at least once more before the snow melts and I actually have to return it.  And I really hope that Ms. Eleanor Davis is busy writing a whole series of these books because it's got all the elements I love for a graphic novel AND for a middle-school inventor:  great pictures, fantastic layouts, humorous banter, mystery, lots of practical and not-so-practical inventions, and so much packed into the illustrations that you'll still be noticing new things after several re-reads.

I think I should reserve a spot for Eleanor Davis' book on the shelf right next to the rest of my classic invention stories.  Thankfully all of the rest of these come as a series and I have quite a few of the books from each series.  (Ms. Davis, can I bribe you with one of the oatmeal-raisin cookies in the fridge to hurry up the next book?).  The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook will be the first graphic novel in the "wacky books for young inventors" section of my bookshelf.  Read on to see what's already there:


My older brother and I adored Hick's Alvin Fernald Books when we were kids.  Like Secret Science Alliance, lots of giggling and laughing while reading is required.  Who had possession of which books was highly debated and it was safe to say that Alvin was our hero.  


The Danny Dunn books were another chapter-book series.  The main character (and friends) would get themselves in a pickle and have to get out...like that time they got sealed into an automated house!


To get an idea of the age of the Tom Swift books, you should know that I got started reading them because they were childhood favorites of my dad's.  So my introduction was a box full of very aged hardback books from my grandparent's house, the kind with the tan pages you turn ever-so-carefully and dust that is imbued into the ink itself.  Now they have a super-cheap collection of 25 of them you can get with one click for your Kindle.  Unlike the other series, I would reserve Tom Swift for older or highly accomodating readers. First appearing in 1910, they can't help but show that they were written for a different generation.  That doesn't stop them from being fun to read...the one about the giant magnet is my top favorite.  


Finally, as a post script of sorts to the list, a last book that isn't on my shelf of must-reread-again-and-again books for young inventors age 8-infinity but that would be if I knew where it was (I suspect one of my siblings has it on their bookshelf).  Homer Price isn't a full-fledged series, but there is a sequel (yay!).  For some reason, when I think of Rube Goldburg machines (complex machines to do simple or pointless tasks), this is the book that immediately comes to mind.  I think it's the donuts.  I love the illustrations, the humor (noting a theme, are you?) and the innovation.  

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