Reaching new heights ...GOING UP! by Monica Kulling

Hi guys!
Welcome back to the Sunday edition of Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers...the place to be when bookish fun is your number one priority of the day.

Today we are heading back to the land of storybooks but with an educational twist.  I'd say it fits into the newer genre of edutainment, but that's just me...or is it? After all, who doesn't like their learning with a side of fun?  Not only does it make the "medicine go down" but it makes what was learned...stick.  please allow me to introduce today's book of choice...

GOING UP!
ELISHA OTIS'S TRIP TO THE TOP
by
Monica Kulling
Illustrated by
David Perkins

Elisha Otis...name ring a bell, or rather a buzzer alerting you that you've arrived on your chosen floor?  That's right.. he's the man behind the convenience we depend on greatly today; the elevator. Now grant it, stairs have never disappeared and will never be obsolete, but imagine having to walk up like 20 flights of stairs or more.. not by choice! I believe we'd see a severe decline in both building heights and penthouse purchases...or an increase in hermits and self contained living environments. 

Thanks to Mr. Otis, we don't have to worry about all that because with the push of a button and the grabbing of a brake, we are safely delivered to whatever destination we seek no matter how tall a place it resides in...but life didn't start out all glorious for this inventor.  He had hard times, odd jobs (a bed frame maker, who knew?) and bad luck littering his path as much or even more so than the next, but that just goes to show you that one never really knows where the next world changing idea will come from.  It may even be YOU.  See? Learned something new didn't ya?

In conclusion, another great release from an author that's leaving her mark in the children's educational arena by letting imaginations run wild and dreams soar. Combine all of the literary merit and learning with the wonderfully detailed illustrations and you'll walk away with a clear picture of the 1800's and how even today we feel its impact. It's a great way to take in a part of history no matter your age and another book that I'll be recommending to one and all.

Review copy received courtesy of author Monica Kulling and Tundra Books, a division of Random House Canada. (THANKS!) For more information on this title as well as the entire "Great Idea Series", be sure to check out the publisher's site (http://www.tundrabooks.com) and Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/tundrabooks) or pay a visit to the author online (http://www.monicakulling.ca). This book was released October 2012 and should be available now on a bookstore shelf near you.

Until next time...happy reading!