Time for Kids: Thomas Edison: A Brilliant Inventor

This biography about Thomas Edison is a very detailed telling of his accomplishments. It is a story for kids to read and learn about one of, not only America's, but the whole world's most prolific scientists. Thomas Edison's life is told thoroughly in not only words, but photographs as well. The book keeps track of Edison's most popular inventions and a few small successes, like the first movie studio. The biography also stays true to Edison's reasons as to why he believes he was able to accomplish so much; he never gave up. Along with his revolutionary inventions came a string of failures throughout his years. But he felt those failures are what makes people special by testing them to always try. The Time for Kids Biographies Thomas show more Edison does a great job highlighting this. show less

I chose this book to compare it with the other Thomas Edison book I read. I think both books had great information. This book was in my opinion, more kid-friendly and kid appealing than the other book. However, both books gave me great information and I enjoyed reading both of them. I know Thomas Edison is significant in history so I definitely wanted to get to know more information about him.

This book gave great insight to Thomas Edison's life personally and professionally. It gives background about his family life and childhood. I learned that Edison was losing his hearing at a very young age. He also stopped going to school and learned to read from his mother, who said he was smarter than his teacher. Edison was often in trouble as a child, most situations made me laugh. For example, he sat on goose eggs in hopes they would hatch (he crushed them instead) & he also had a friend eat worms because he figured that was what made birds fly (it did not make his friend fly). Edison worked on the railroad for a good part of his young life. He tried lab experiments, but set one of the train cars on fire. He then began selling show more newspapers on the train, which was great business. If he created a new invention, he did not stop till he created everything necessary to make it work. He was dedicated and did not stop working even when he was ill! He died at age 84. Three days after his death electric lights all over the United States were dimmed for one minute. "It was a way of honoring the man who lit up the world."

This book was very interesting and inspiring. I think it would be a great book for children to read who need a little extra push because this book makes you realize that you can accomplish anything with hard work and dedication. show less

As far as biographies go, Time for Kids nailed it, in my opinion. Thomas Edison is known and most remembered for his invention of the light bulb, but what many kids never learn about are his other inventions and accomplishments. Edison came from humble beginnings and was always curious. He thought differently than everyone else and asked too many questions, a fault which got him thrown out of school. He began finding new and improved ways of doing things at an early age and got his first patent for an invention in 1868. He was 21 years old and invented an automatic vote counter. The US government wasn't very interested in a vote counter back then, but we use them now. From there, his success took off. Some of his many inventions show more included a meter to measure how much electricity a house uses, a talking doll, a way to vacuum pack foods to keep them fresh, the phonograph, and moving pictures. Because of Edison, not only can we have light when it's dark, but we can listen to music and watch movies as well. He received over 1000 patents in his lifetime. Edison didn't always succeed (it took him many tries before he got the light bulb right), but he never gave up. The book also contains many illustrations and explanations to accompany the text. If there is a word that a student might not know, such as the word "patent", the book gives a definition. It's really great for a classroom environment and I think kids would enjoy reading books like this. show less

I liked this book for two reasons. First, the language was descriptive. When people heard about Edison’s “electric village,” they were curious and “about three thousand people headed for Menlo Park. . . The visitors were amazed to see the little New Jersey town glowing with warm, yellow light. It was like magic”. This descriptive language allowed me to envision this magical sight in my mind. It allowed me to see how amazed and excited people were to find out someone invented a working light bulb. I was able to feel what it was like to experience light bulbs for the very first time. Second, the point of view is written in third person. Having this point of view made the book engaging and easy to read. It allowed me to hear show more about Edison’s life and his journey of creating the light bulb. It made this biography into a story that was enjoyable and informative. The main idea of this book is to teach readers about Thomas Edison’s life and his accomplishments. The book discussed his life growing up and how he never gave up on his inventions. He continuously worked hard to achieve his dreams. show less

Like all the other (I have read so far) editons of "Time of Kids" are made in a brilliant way. The book is structured in eight chapter which deal with different topics of Edison's life. The pages are filled with lot of interesting information, pictures, sketches, newspaper clippings and paintings. After having read three of the editions, I can recommend all of them. I gave this book just three starts, though. I am not that interested in science, therefore, I preferred the other books.

SUMMARY
This story begins by recognizing the incredible invention that made Thomas Edison famous: the lightbulb. Afterwards, it dives into his childhood. The book also explains the ups and downs he had as an inventor. It explains how he helped the war effort shortly before he died, as well.

REVIEW
I tend to enjoy informational books that include a lot of interesting and engaging text features. This book has a lot of them. I loved that there was an actual guide to morse code. I also thought that the polls that were included were very interesting. Overall, I think the book provided some great information about Edison while also supplementing the reading with additional fun facts and information.