Mr. Ferris and His Wheel - a review

Davis, Kathryn Gibbs. 2014. Mr. Ferris and his Wheel. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Illustrated by Gilbert Ford.

Though written in a fully illustrated, engaging and narrative nonfiction style, Mr. Ferris and his Wheel is nevertheless, a well-sourced and researched picture book for older readers.

The story of the 1863, Chicago World's Fair debut of the world's first Ferris wheel (or Monster Wheel, as Mr. Ferris originally named it),  is told in a flowing and entertaining style,

     George arrived in Chicago and made his case to the construction chief of the fair.

     The chief stared at George's drawings.  No one had ever created a fair attraction that huge and complicated.  The chief told George that his structure was "so flimsy it would collapse."

     George had heard enough.  He rolled up his drawings and said, "You are an architect, sir. I am an engineer."

     George knew something the chief did not.  His invention would be delicate-looking and strong.  It would be both stronger and lighter than the Eiffel Tower because it would be built with an amazing new metal—steel.

and

it contains sidebars that impart more technical information that might otherwise interrupt the flow of the story,

George was a steel expert, and his structure would be made of a steel alloy.  Alloys combine a super-strong mix of a hard metal with two or more chemical elements.

George Ferris' determination is a story in itself, but it is the engineering genius of his wheel that steals the show.  A "must-have" for any school or public library.

Some facts about the original "Ferris" wheel:

• 834' in circumference
• 265' above the ground
• 3,000 electric lightbulbs (this itself was a marvel in 1893!)
• forty velvet seats per car

Ferris wheel at the Chicago World's Fair c1893.
 Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division[/caption]

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Copyright © 2014 L Taylor All Rights Reserved.

Twice Upon a Marigold

Ferris, Jean. 2008. Twice upon a Marigold. Harcourt: Orlando.

Twice Upon a Marigold is the follow-up story to the multiple award-winning bestseller, Once Upon a Marigold (one of my favorites). The story continues the saga of Princess, (now Queen) Marigold and Prince Christian after the tyrant, Queen Olympia's, "unfortunate" disappearance into the river on their wedding day.

Twice Upon a Marigold continues the tongue-in-cheek humor of the original. Reading the "Daily Discourse," Marigold remarks,

"Look at that. Alison Wonderland has gotten lost again. That girl just never learns."

There are not enough new fairy tale funnies, however, to match the original book. "P mail," (pigeon messages), and Marigold's penchant for bad jokes, are holdovers from the previous book. Additionally, the moral messages in Twice Upon a Marigold are delivered a little heavy-handedly. When Lazy Susan is demoted to a job as a scullery maid, Mrs. Clover questions her and takes her to task,

"'How are those kettles coming along?' she asked pointedly. 'They're repulsive,' Lazy Susan said. 'That's true,' Mrs. Clover agreed. 'But getting them clean is a necessity. And a great accomplishment. Something to be proud of.' ...

Always before she'd been content to avoid effort of any kind, and she hadn't cared who knew it. But the things Mrs. Clover had said to her made her feel . . . maybe ashamed? Or chastened? Or embarrassed? Whatever it was, it wasn't a good feeling."

A surprise twist at the end regarding the royal dressmaker and chef - the magically handy, foreign language expert, Stan Lucasa, adds some last-minute humor. A quick, fun read for middle-grades, but not on par with the original.

Once Upon a Marigold was the winner of multiple awards including: ALA Best Book for Young Adults, ALA Notable Children’s Book, and Voice for Youth Advocates (VOYA) Top Shelf Fiction for Middle School Readers

Underground

Ferris, Jean. 2007. Underground. Farrar, Strauss & Giroux.

Underground is the story of slaves that, through varying paths, find themselves working at the Mammoth Cave Hotel in 1839. The hotel houses visitors stopping to see Kentucky’s natural wonder, Mammoth Cave.

Life for Charlotte and the other slaves is comparatively good at Mammoth Cave Hotel, but Charlotte knows of a worse life as a slave in the Deep South. Stephen is content with his limited autonomy as an underground guide. Brothers, Nick and Mat, are thankful for regular meals and little trouble from their master. Mittie, the elder slave of the group, is quiet and serious and keeps her opinions to herself.

Thh slaves' lives are changed when a “runner” from the south appears on the hotel property. Now Charlotte must make a choice about the "underground," both literally and figuratively, that will affect them all, as Mammoth Cave and the Underground Railroad become entwined.

Although Mammoth Caves was not likely a stop on the Underground Railroad, most of the characters in this story were real persons. Charlotte and Stephen’s names are still scratched or smoked onto the walls of the caves. An Author’s Note explains which occurrences in the story actually happened. Ferris also reveals the fates of the four young slaves.

Historical fiction fans should enjoy this book. It is cataloged as a YA book, but seems more appropriate as J Fic. Discussions of the slaves' parentage may have prompted the YA label. Several brief references are made to masters fathering children with unwilling slaves.