Laurie Wallmark

Not going to lie, but I did not really know the backstory of Hedy Lamarr. Granted, I watched her in several Hollywood films. BUT I did not know that she was an inventor. Wow. There is so much more to her story than being an actress and having six marriages.

This picture book talks about her "frequency hopping" invention that she worked on in the 1940's. Her hope was that it would block transmissions so the Nazis would not intercept American tordepos. However, this technology was not even declassified until the 1960's. She would not get credit for any of her inventions and such until 1996 when she received the "Pioneer Award from the Electronic Frontier Foundation for their significant contribution to computers." In 2014, Hedy Lamarr was posthumously inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Can you just say WOW?!

I don't fully understand the science aspects in this book (hence why I am a librarian ;)) But as another reviewer wrote, this book could be used in middle school classrooms because of the technology involved. In fact, there are so many ways this book could be used in an elementary, middle, or even high school class room! Dr. Steiner always told me that picture books should be used more than they are.

For the girl who loves STEM, this is a definite must read. For the individuals who love classic Hollywood, this is also a read worth recommending. After all, there is always more to people than what meets the eye.… (más)