An engaging picture book biography of self-taught engineer Emma Lilian Todd describes how she took apart and reassembled clocks as a child and imagined inventions as a patent clerk before becoming the first woman in history to design an airplane. Illustrations. - (Baker & Taylor)
Presents the life of Emma Lilian Todd, an inventor, engineer, and patent office worker who designed a successful flying machine after many failures. - (Baker & Taylor)
"Emma Lilian Todd's mind was always soaring--she loved to solve problems. Lilian tinkered and fiddled with all sorts of objects, turning dreams into useful inventions. As a child, she took apart and reassembled clocks to figure out how they worked. As anadult, typing up patents at the U.S. Patent Office, Lilian built the inventions in her mind, including many designs for flying machines. However, they all seemed too impractical. Lilian knew she could design one that worked. She took inspiration from both nature and her many failures, driving herself to perfect the design that would eventually successfully fly." -- Amazon.com. - (Baker & Taylor)
Meet self-taught engineer Emma Lilian Todd as she tackles one of the greatest challenges of the early 1900s: designing an airplane.
Emma Lilian Todd's mind was always soaring--she loved to solve problems. Lilian tinkered and fiddled with all sorts of objects, turning dreams into useful inventions. As a child, she took apart and reassembled clocks to figure out how they worked. As an adult, typing up patents at the U.S. Patent Office, Lilian built the inventions in her mind, including many designs for flying machines. However, they all seemed too impractical. Lilian knew she could design one that worked. She took inspiration from both nature and her many failures, driving herself to perfect the design that would eventually successfully fly. - (Random House, Inc.)
Kirsten W. Larson used to work with rocket scientists at NASA. Now she writes about rocket science--and just about any science--for kids. She is the author of more than twenty-five children's books, including the Robotics in Our World series. Visit https://kirsten-w-larson.com.
After working as an industrial designer for seven years, Tracy Subisak began her business as a freelance illustrator and designer. She specializes in visual storytelling through children's literature, storyboarding, and design work. Visit tracysubisak.com. - (Random House, Inc.)
Booklist Reviews
In tribute to the hands-on spirit of all inventors—but especially women—Larson profiles a little-known, self-taught engineer who designed a working aircraft that improved upon the Wright brothers' model. With a family that encouraged her to make and fiddle with gadgets, Emma Lilian Todd gravitated toward a job in the U.S. Patent Office, where her interest in flying machines led to years of experimentation. Though this account has little to say about Todd's other inventions or the rest of her life, her determination despite failures is a central theme that adds plenty of lift. In windswept digital watercolors, Subisak depicts her subject as an active, confident figure. Back matter, which includes a comprehensive source list and a general time line of aviation in the Wright era, adds additional detail. Todd herself was not a pilot, but her story pairs naturally with those about the first generations of female aviators (e.g., Louise Borden's Fly High! The Story of Bessie Coleman, 2001; Marissa Moss' Brave Harriet, 2001; Julie Cummins' Flying Solo: How Ruth Elder Soared into America's Heart, 2013). Grades 2-4. Copyright 2020 Booklist Reviews.