Mr. Ferris and His Wheel

by Kathryn Gibbs Davis, Gilbert Ford (Illustrator)

Overview

Capturing an engineer’s creative vision and mind for detail, this fully illustrated picture book biography sheds light on how the American inventor George Ferris defied gravity and seemingly impossible odds to invent the world’s most iconic amusement park attraction, the Ferris wheel.
     A fun, fact-filled text by Kathryn Gibbs Davis combines with Gilbert Ford’s dazzling full-color illustrations to transport readers to the 1893 World’s Fair, where George Ferris and his big, wonderful wheel lifted passengers to the skies for the first time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063452039
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/22/2025
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Kathryn Gibbs Davis has a gift for combining history and storytelling in a manner that relates to readers of many ages. Her Wackiest White House Pet earned the Parents Gold Choice Award and was read aloud by former First Lady Barbara Bush during a nationally televised event at the presidential library. Kathryn is an active member of the Children’s Literature Network. Visit gibbsdavis.com.

Gilbert Ford was born into a family of photographers. Instead of taking up the camera, he moved to New York to attend the prestigious Pratt Institute. His illustrations have appeared in books, magazines, newspapers, toys, billboards and advertisements. 

www.gilbertford.com
Twitter: @gilbertford
Instagram: @gilbertford777

Editorial Reviews

* "Davis' picture-book bio soars, inspires, and keeps (the pages) ever turning" —Booklist, starred review "The modernist look, inherently interesting topic, and strong documentation...make this title a positive addition." —School Library Journal "Kids who take ferris wheels for granted should find this history eye-opening." —Kirkus "Davis’s picture-book account of the Ferris Wheel construction does a first-rate job of capturing the many risks—to civic pride, financial success, and public safety—that attached to the first iteration of what most readers have already enjoyed as a local carnival attraction." —Bulletin "Davis delivers a tense and satisfying underdog story, while Ford creates a stylized 19th-century landscape." —Publishers Weekly "[An] informative and entertaining account." —Wall Street Journal —

From the Publisher

09/01/2014
With the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair on the horizon, American engineer George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. won a design contest for what would become the Ferris wheel, a “structure that would dazzle and move, not just stand still like the Eiffel Tower” (the star of the previous World Fair). Despite naysayers (“It’s undignified,” grouses one onlooker), George and his crew plowed forward with plans for the giant, circular steel structure, unveiling the machine at the fair’s opening. Davis delivers a tense and satisfying underdog story, while Ford creates a stylized 19th-century landscape, setting impressionistic backgrounds against the hard-edged geometric shapes of the wheel and other structures, colored in deep, subdued blues and violets. Direct quotations and captions explaining historical detail keep the context of the story in sharp focus. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Jodi Reamer, Writers House. Illustrator’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

06/01/2014
K-Gr 3—It's almost time for the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, and American architects are hoping to design a star attraction to rival the French Eiffel Tower. Mechanical engineer George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. has a daring idea: a huge, round, moving structure made from steel, a new metal unrivaled in both lightness and strength. After overcoming obstacles ranging from mockery to quicksand, Ferris and his team finally complete their wheel, which delights fairgoers and goes on to become a staple of fairgrounds around the world. Librarians familiar with Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City (Random, 2002) already know this story, but the focus here is less on the Chicago World's Fair and more on the process involved in building a mechanical marvel. Details such as why support structures were necessary and how tension wheels work will engage emerging engineers, while those with a less scientific bent can nevertheless appreciate the excitement felt by the Ferris Wheel's very first passengers. The primary story is told in an easy-to-read serif font, and secondary details are added in smaller sans-serif sections. A purple-dominated color scheme contrasts with occasional greens and yellows. Overall, the modernist look, inherently interesting topic, and strong documentation (including quotations from primary sources) make this title a positive addition, especially those looking to enhance their nonfiction offerings in view of new Common Core standards.—Jill Ratzan, I. L. Peretz Community Jewish School, Somerset, NJ

School Library Journal

2014-06-18
The invention of the Ferris wheel is explored in story and pictures designed to describe the age of innovation for young readers.The legendary Ferris wheel was one of myriad inventions that came out of the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. was a mechanical engineer who was determined to outdo the star of the previous World’s Fair, the Eiffel Tower. To Ferris, engineering and innovation were part of the American nature, and he set out to prove it by designing a structure that would amaze fairgoers. Working with his engineering partner, Ferris turned his vision into plans but had difficulty convincing officials until they found themselves without a star attraction months before the fair was to open. They agreed to his plan but provided no financing. Ferris was relentless in his efforts to bring his wheel to fruition, and it became one of the fair’s most popular attractions. This straightforward narrative for younger readers provides a good sense of the period of innovation and the type of personal drive it took to bring ideas to reality. Additional pertinent facts that support the story appear in sidebars. The slightly retro, line-and-color illustrations, done in an unexpected, muted palette, enhance the text and provide additional interest.Kids who take Ferris wheels for granted should find this history eye-opening. (sources, bibliography, websites) (Informational picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews