Impossible Inventions

Description

When Leonardo da Vinci invented the tank, car, helicopter, glider, parachute, submarine, lift and telescope, over 500 years ago, he was considered a dreamer. Or even crazy. Today he is understood to be a genius, ahead of his time. This book collects ancient and modern inventions. Some are revolutionary, others comical, others were simply impossible. But each of them testifies to the extraordinary imaginations of their inventors. You will find here a flying bicycle, bubble telegraph, passenger clouds and passenger birds, mechanical chess players, a water clock, a concentration hood and many more incredible ideas.

Aleksandra Mizielinska and Daniel Mizielinski are graduates of the Faculty of Graphic Arts of the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts and founders of the Hipopotam Studio. They are authors of internationally recognized children's books and creators of fonts, apps and websites. Their prize winning book Maps was a worldwide bestseller. Malgorzata Mycielska is an art historian, publisher and book editor.

"Each invention is outlined with brilliant diagrammatic illustrations on a double-page spread, and the book puts each invention into a humorous context with a cartoon on the following page" -- Book Trust "This brilliant book, which includes ideas ancient and modern, revolutionary and comical, is simply brimming with witty, richly coloured illustrations and concise, fully accessible descriptions and will hopefully inspire a new generation of youngsters to get inventing themselves!" -- Lancashire Post "It's a fun book. Sure it covers physics, mechanics, gases...but its not homework in disguise. Also, in typical Gecko Press fashion, Impossible Inventions is physically lovely, with paper you want to smush your cheeks against and colours you want to eat." -- The Sapling "An amiable ramble past some of the quirkier highlights in the history of invention." -- Kirkus Reviews