The New York Times Book Review, Sara Ivry
For the most part, the color in Lindsay's small book far outweighs its deficits, making it a delightful, instructive collection.


From Book News, Inc.
Freelance writer Lindsay shares stories from the history of invention. Proceeding room-by-room (from bathroom to garage), he emphasizes the personalities responsible for 21 everyday objects--from Madame C.J. Walker's hair straightener to breakfast cereal (a result of Kellogg sibling rivalry) to the invention alleged to have been devised by the mythical Dr. Condom.Book News, Inc.®, Portland, OR


Book Description
David Lindsay tours the typical American home to examine the most taken-for-granted objects, and finds incredible stories behind everyday items. From the intercom, the mailbox, the microwave oven, pencils, ballpoint pens, Scotch tape, and Post-its to the screw thread, the yo-yo, blue jeans, zippers, and even condoms, here are the fascinating stories of the quotidian objects whose history is little known. (5 x 7 1/4, 192 pages, illustrations) David Lindsay is the author of Madness in the Making and The Patent Files: Dispatches from the Frontiers of Inventio. He lives in New York City.


From the Back Cover
Take a look around you - every little object and product in your home has its own story to tell, and here are the most fascinating. David Lindsay tours the typical American home to examine the most taken-for-granted objects, and finds incredible stories behind everyday items.
From the intercom, the mailbox, the microwave oven, pencils, ballpoint pens, Scotch tape, and Post-its to the screw thread, the yo-yo, blue jeans, zippers, and even condoms, here are the fascinating stories of the quotidian objects whose history is little known.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

David Lindsay tours the typical American home to examine the most taken-for-granted objects, and finds incredible stories behind everyday items. From the intercom, the mailbox, the microwave oven, pencils, ballpoint pens, Scotch tape, and Post-its to the screw thread, the yo-yo, blue jeans, zippers, and even condoms, here are fascinating stories of the quotidian objects whose history is little known.

FROM THE CRITICS

KLIATT - Gloria Levine Bryant

No matter how commonly used and even appreciated their products may be, the problem-solvers who invented them are often largely unsung heroes. Lindsay vows to rectify that situation, in part, by telling the stories behind the creators of 21 household items. The result is a lively, fun little book with short, informative pieces about the often quirky inventors responsible for such everyday items as breakfast cereal, pencils, flat-bottomed paper bags (middle school teachers and media specialists take heed...) the backless brassiere, and condoms. Students doing research on some of the better-known inventors, such as Madame CJ Walker (first African American millionaire) and John Logie Baird (the Scotsman often credited with the invention of TV) will find information here that they probably will not find elsewhere (certainly not in more readable form). There is plenty here, too, for students looking for particulars about more obscure inventors (such as Willy Higinbotham, who took time off his research on nuclear energy to invent the computer game of Solitaire, and Robert Kearns, who came up with the idea for the intermittent windshield wiper after a champagne cork blinded him in one eye). House of Invention would be a welcome addition to any school or classroom library, and would be particularly useful in teaching a unit on invention. KLIATT Codes: JSA￯﾿ﾽRecommended for junior and senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2000, Lyons Press, 179p. illus. bibliog.,

Booknews

Freelance writer Lindsay shares stories from the history of invention. Proceeding room-by-room (from bathroom to garage), he emphasizes the personalities responsible for 21 everyday objectsfrom Madame C.J. Walker's hair straightener to breakfast cereal (a result of Kellogg sibling rivalry) to the invention alleged to have been devised by the mythical Dr. Condom. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Sara Ivry - The New York Times Book Review