The
Marvelous Thing that Came from A Spring: The Accidental Invention of the Toy
That Swept the Nation tells the story of
inventor Richard James, his wife Betty, and the invention of the slinky. As
the title suggests, the invention of the slinky was an accident. Richard James
worked as an engineer in a shipyard for the United States Navy in 1943. While
researching a way to keep fragile ship equipment stable when out at sea, a torsion
spring fell into his lap…and an idea was born.
Richard and his wife Betty tested the slinky with
their own son, Tom. It fell down the stairs, and as Ford marvelously
illustrates with a real lightbulb, the “aha” moment went off in Richard’s head—this
simple spring could provide amusement. It could be a toy.
It was Betty who came up with the name Slinky.
After two days of reading the dictionary she reached the letter ‘S.’ Slinky:
meaning “graceful” and “curvy in movement.” Ford writes,
“‘Slinky’ also sounded like the swish and clink of
the spring’s coils in motion.”
Nobody would buy the slinky. In a fantastic
illustration spread, Richard James begs the owner of Gimbels, a toy store, to
let him demonstrate his new toy. The owner agreed to let James demonstrate how
the slinky worked to Christmas shoppers in November 1945. All four-hundred
slinkys James had on hand sold out in ninety minutes. It was a success.
The truly marvelous thing about this book are the
illustrations. Ford’s style is groundbreaking, blending two-dimensional and
three-dimensional elements. A piece of pipe cleaner is the steam spiraling from
a coffee cup. On the shelves of Gimbel’s, tiny glass bottles and a sack of
sugar can be found, while James and Gimbels are illustrated as paper-cut-outs
against the 3-D backdrop. Lawns are made of washrags, and throughout the pages,
an observant reader will spot chalkboards, dominos, rulers, and pickup sticks.
And of course, a slinky or metal spring can be found on every page. Each
illustration spread is a world unto itself, a diorama made with materials both found
and made. As such, the effect is that Ford is “inventing” his own illustrations
just as James invents the slinky.
The book ends on this line: “It took the teamwork
of a dreamer and a planner to turn an ordinary spring into a truly MARVELOUS
thing.”
Yes, Ford’s new picture book is indeed marvelous.
Combining art, history, and science, this picture book will inspire children to
see the world in a new way, to pick up their own toys
and find new ways to play.
READ THE INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR GILBERT FORD!
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