(3) K-3 Great Idea series. Illustrated by David Parkin. This picture-book biography details the mid-nineteenth-century life and eventual successes of Elisha Otis, inventor of the modern elevator. Kulling succinctly and simply recounts Otis's progression from bed-frame factory worker to designer of lifts for heavy machinery to World's Fair marvel when he debuted his passenger elevator. Crisp pen-and-ink with watercolor illustrations contribute energy and levity to the account.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan