Mister T.V.

September 1, 2020

PreS-Gr 2-Fulton (Bears Don't Eat Egg Sandwiches) offers a wonderful nonfiction book about John Logie Baird, the inventor of the first television. Baird, who was born in 1888, grew up in Helensburgh, Scotland. Beginning with Baird's unnamed childhood illness, the text quickly chronicles his many attempted inventions that preceded his successful transmission of a live image of a person. The writing flows easily, keeping the reading level directed at young readers but still providing enough information to share an exciting story. Baird's resilience will appeal to children learning about the value of perseverance. Corrigan's detailed illustrations depict a cast of predominantly white characters. A time line of inventions contributing to the first television and a time line of historic events paralleling Baird's work are included. An author's note discusses other prominent inventors working to build the television. VERDICT Curious young creators will adore this book. A worthy purchase for most libraries.-Katherine Rao, Palos Verdes Lib. Dist., CA

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2020
Of the many inventors experimenting in the early 20th century with what became television, John Logie Baird was the first to build a working mechanical machine that transmitted live, moving pictures. Unfortunately, those are the only significant facts revealed in this sketchy, disappointing biography. Baird, identified by only his first name throughout the narrative, grew up sickly in Scotland in a home full of books. The nature of his illness is never revealed, nor are the titles of the books he read that may have inspired his interest in inventing. Baird's first invention was a homemade telephone exchange, followed by a machine to generate electricity for his home. Readers never learn when and how he created them, however. His other inventions included a glass razor and shoes filled with air for comfort. While convalescing from another unnamed illness, Baird read about an unidentified inventor attempting to build a machine that could show "real-life pictures" to people in their homes. Baird succeeded in building the first machine able to do this, but how he achieved it is vaguely explained. A timeline reveals that Baird also gave the first demonstration of color TV in 1944. Complementing the inadequate information are bland cartoon illustrations that depict an all-White cast until one concluding picture of an interracial family watching a flat screen. There are no source notes or bibliography. This nebulous biography fails to resolve into a clear picture. (Picture book/biography. 4-8)

COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.