Impossible Inventions

When Leonardo da Vinci sketched ideas for the tank, car, helicopter, glider,parachute, submarine, lift and telescope, over 500 years ago, he was considered a dreamer. Or even crazy. Today he is understood to be agenius, ahead of his time.This book collects ancient and modern inventions. Some are revolutionary, others comical, others were simply impossible. But each of them testifies to the extraordinary imaginations of their inventors.You will find here a flying bicycle, bubble telegraph, passenger clouds and passenger birds, mechanical chess players, a water clock, a concentration hood and many more incredible ideas.

“"Descriptions of over three dozen historical inventions--a few of which, at least, have turned out to be not as harebrained as they may seem at first glance. Pride of place goes, of course, to Leonardo da Vinci, though other eccentric visionaries such as Heron of Alexandria (a mysteriously self-opening door) and Nikola Tesla (planetwide wireless electric power) earn nods. Along with a squadron of vehicles that would (supposedly) fly or float into the air, the authors present a variety of ancient timepieces, including one that used scents, oddball vehicles driven by steam, a device that sorts small candies by color, the once-renowned chess-playing (fake) automaton known as the 'Mechanical Turk,' an LP record made of ice, a flatulence deodorizer, and like oddities. Nearly all of these saw at least experimental models--though, in the case of Leonardo's ornithopter, not until 2010. The entries are arranged in no particular order. Most come with labeled schematic illustrations of the invention and, on the following pages, a broader cityscape or other scene featuring witnesses offering humorous comments or critical observations ('We forgot to add brakes!'). Human figures are all caricatures, European of features except for one group of Chinese. An amiable ramble past some of the quirkier highlights in the history of invention."--Kirkus Reviews”

"Each invention is outlined with brilliant diagrammatic illustrations on a double-page spread, and the book puts each invention into a humorous context with a cartoon on the following page" -- Book Trust
"This brilliant book, which includes ideas ancient and modern, revolutionary and comical, is simply brimming with witty, richly coloured illustrations and concise, fully accessible descriptions and will hopefully inspire a new generation of youngsters to get inventing themselves!" -- Lancashire Post
"It’s a fun book. Sure it covers physics, mechanics, gases…but its not homework in disguise. Also, in typical Gecko Press fashion, Impossible Inventions is physically lovely, with paper you want to smush your cheeks against and colours you want to eat." -- The Sapling

"An amiable ramble past some of the quirkier highlights in the history of invention."

Alexandra Mizielinska and Daniel Mizielinski are graduates of the Faculty of Graphic Arts of the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts and founders of the Hipopotam Studio. They are authors of internationally recognized children's books and creators of fonts, apps and websites. Their prize-winning book Maps was a worldwide bestseller.Malgorzata Mycielska is an art historian, publisher and book editor.

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