Usually paced to highlight visual language, comics are not generally prized as educational texts. More plaudits, then, for First Second's Science Comics series' latest installment, in which they've reimagined the scope of comics again and demonstrated how useful comics can be for teaching scientific concepts. This slim volume about cars is jam-packed with information that is fueled rather than hampered by its visual language. In four sections that cover the invention, design, culture, and impact on the environment of cars, Zettwoch manages to survey essentially every scientific and mechanical development necessary to the creation and evolution of the automobile, from millions of years ago (fire and combustion) to the near future (driverless cars). The winding scenery that gives this journey warmth is historical anecdotes the world's first getaway car?!?) and visual flourishes charting things like aesthetic transformations, land speed records, and weird cars. Illustrating all this data could make for unreadable clutter, but Zettwoch imbues his visually dense pages with personality and flow befitting his subject. Includes glossary, notes and bibliography.

The newest installment of the Science Comics series presents the science behind cars, including the advent of human tool-making and harnessing of fire, the fundamentals of simple machines, and the invention of the wheel. In a semichronological fashion, Zettwoch explores the rise of steam-powered vehicles and early engines. The jam-packed comics feature edifying graphics, diagrams, and a cast of quirky inventors and adventurers; playful sections include -Extreme Rides- and a brief history of the car radio. Recent advancements in more environmentally sound technology conclude the volume, including electric and self-driving cars. The book makes it clear that the transportation available to humans today is possible thanks to a very long history of human exploration, imagination, and-of course-scientific innovation. Also available: Wild Weather: Storms, Meteorology, and Climate and Cats: Nature and Nurture. Ages 9-11. (May)