The Horn Book Guide

BIOGRAPHIES

Kroll, Steven

Robert Fulton: From Submarine to Steamboat

32 pp. | Holiday | March, 1999 | Trade ISBN 0-8234-1433-7 $$16.95

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Bill Farnsworth. Kroll breezes through the life and inventions of Robert Fulton in this picture book biography. A lot of information and history is relayed in thirty-two pages; as a result, the text, while informative, reads more like a list of events than a narrative, and Fulton's character is only sketchily revealed. The strength of the book lies in the illustrations: Farnsworth adds atmosphere and historical setting to the story with his detailed paintings.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth