KULLING, Monica . To the Rescue!: Garrett Morgan Underground . illus. by David Parkins. ISBN 9781770495203 . ea vol: 32p. (Great Ideas). Tundra . 2016. Tr. $17.99. K-Gr 2 Repairmen whose "great ideas" were born of necessity are the subjects of the newest additions to this biography series. In the 1920s, Frank Zamboni opened a skating rink and needed to speed up the 90-minute task of resurfacing the ice to make it smooth. Clean Sweep! describes how his design resulted in the Zamboni machine (used all over the world today), which can move many cubic feet of ice in one pass, wash the surface, and apply fresh waterall in 10 minutes. Benoit's gouache and watercolor illustrations accurately depict the changing time periods, and the rounded shapes, with warm, muted blues, grays, and browns, are pleasing to a child's eye. To the Rescue! delineates how Garrett Morgan, a Kentucky-born son of slaves, developed a stronger sewing machine belt, a cream that prevented sewing machine needles from damaging cloth (and that also straightened hair), and a personal safety hood that would become the first gas mask used by firemen, underground workers, and World War I soldiers in the trenches. While Morgan faced discrimination and had to hire a white assistant to help market his product, his contributions to safety continue to be lauded by police and fire departments all around the country. Parkins uses his cartoonist skills in outlining these richly detailed illustrations, filled in with subdued gray and brown watercolors. The narratives are historically informative, and appended notes remind readers of the lasting impact of these men's great ideas. VERDICT Wonderful nonfiction narratives that can be used to highlight diverse innovators whom history texts may have overlooked. Vicki Reutter, State University of New York at Cortland

This picture book tells the story of Frank Zamboni, an ice-rink owner in California during the 1940s, and his decade-long quest to invent a perfect rink-cleaning machine. Frank's story also provides insight into the realities of mid-twentieth-century American working life, when many children needed to leave school early to work on family farms, siblings saved up to send one family member to college, and observant entrepreneurs created new products and opened up new businesses. The overriding message is perseverance; Frank's hard work was recognized by his clients, including skating and hockey organizations, and even skating superstar Sonja Henie, who personally owned two Zambonis. The slightly oversize format helps the fairly large chunks of text go down easier, and the detailed illustrations are expertly aligned. An introductory poem, "Bone Blades," reminds readers that people have enjoyed ice-skating for hundreds of years, and sets the tone for how ingenious ideas can almost always make life better. This offering should appeal to inventors and ice rink enthusiasts alike.