What Color Is My World? : The Lost History of African-American Inventors (Hardcover)

Publishers Weekly,Making use of an unusual format, former NBA star Abdul-Jabbar and his On the Shoulders of Giants coauthor Obstfeld offer an upbeat history lesson set within a fictional narrative framework. Siblings the Shoulders of Giants coauthor Obstfeld offer an upbeat history lesson set within a fictional narrative framework. Siblings Ella and Herbie, whose story unfolds in typeset chapter booklike pages surrounded by warmly lit paintings of their adventures, are less than enthusiastic about their fixer-upper of a new house. But as eccentric handyman Mr. Mital unveils the house's potential, he also teaches them about contributions made by African-American inventors ("There's more to our history than slavery, jazz, sports, and civil rights marches," he says). Flaps show lifelike portraits of individuals like Dr. Mark Dean, a v-p at IBM; Dr. Charles Drew, who developed the concept of blood banks; and nuclear engineer Lonnie Johnson, inventor of the Super Soaker squirt gun. Ella's off-the-cuff notes appear inside the flaps, while several spreads provide detailed profiles of other inventors and graphic novel-style passages. The banter between the siblings and, in particular, Ella's snarky zingers keep things from feeling didactic-it's an entertaining and often surprising exploration of lesser-known innovators, past and present. Ages 8-12. Agent: Iconomy. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.