Queen Victoria’s Bathing Machine by Gloria Whelan (review)

In this rhyming story, poor Queen Victoria would love to go for a dip in the ocean, but the immense impropriety of the queen being seen in public in bathing attire puts the kibosh on that idea—until her husband Albert comes up with a plan. After Victoria nixes Albert’s first thought—catapulting her from the window—Albert has a light-bulb moment. He builds Victoria a little shed on wheels, in which she can change into her swimming costume and be rolled to the water’s edge where she can then discreetly exit directly into the ocean. This solves the problem, and Victoria can finally enjoy a pleasant swim. It’s stretching it a bit to call this factual, since Albert didn’t actually invent the bathing machine (which was popular for decades before Victoria was even born), but her swim and bathing machine are indeed historically rooted; an author’s note gives a brief description of Victoria, her life and family, and the actual bathing machine (which can still be seen today on the Isle of Wight), as well as a list of resources, mostly geared towards adults. Modern kids will need more context than is given here to understand what the big deal was with Vicky taking a public plunge, and Whelan’s rhyming text, while sprightly and clever, doesn’t always scan (“Good-bye to the land, good-by to the turf,/ Victoria rode the waves and dove into the surf”). Carpenter’s dynamic digitally created art, with animated, inky black outlines and dappled textures, breathes life into these historical figures, however, and the casual scenes of royal home life behind closed doors are drolly amusing. Despite a few hitches, this might provide a useful springboard for youngsters ready to dive into further study of this mighty monarch.