From Here to There: Inventions That Changed the Way the World Moves by Vivian Kirkfield (review)

Kirkfield, Vivian From Here to There: Inventions That Changed the Way the World Moves; illus. by Gilbert Ford. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021 [96p] Trade ed. ISBN 9781328560919 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9780358359067 $12.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 2-5

Here Kirkfield examines nine inventions that encourage middle grade readers to think about what it takes to conquer distance: sometimes it's a vehicle or a propellant, or it might be a tweak or a system or an updated way of doing something familiar, or more likely, it's an innovative mash-up of components and approaches. The well-known story of the Montgolfier brothers and their newfangled hot air balloon represents a pretty traditional idea of an invention, but what do we make of Karl Benz's gas-fueled automobile? Surely there were competitors, but it was wife Bertha's rogue sixty-mile trip—a mom at the wheel with kids aboard—that caught the public eye and pushed the invention into success. Yes, Eric Wickman got the idea to stretch a car into a bus, but without conceiving and coordinating intercity routes that bus might not have reached its potential. Wheelchairs had been around for ages before Herbert Everest and Harry Jennings figured a way to make them light and collapsible, transforming them into freedom machines for the mobility impaired. Each tidily crafted tale is flexible as a read-alone or -along, and the heavily illustrated volume also functions like a collection of stand-alone picture books. Kirkfield is relentlessly optimistic regarding invention as a force for good, brushing aside such concerns as the role of the steam locomotive in decimating Native American nations or the job losses associated with industrial robotics, but that's all the more fuel to toss into fiery middle-grade class discussion. A timeline spanning millennia and global cultures, source notes, chapter bibliographies, and resources for young inventors are included.