Neo Leo
The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo da Vinci
By Gene Barretta; Gene Barretta (Illustrator)
(Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), Hardcover, 9780805087031, 40pp.)
Publication Date: August 4, 2009
Categories: Biography & Autobiography - Historical, Concepts - General, Technology - How Things Work/Are Made
 |     |
In 1781, Thomas Paine came up with a model for a single-span bridge; in 1887, Adolf Eugen Fick made the first pair of contact lenses; and in 1907, Paul Cornu built the first helicopter. But Leonardo da Vinci thought of all these ideas more than five hundred years ago!
At once an artist, inventor, engineer, and scientist, da Vinci wrote and drew detailed descriptions of what would later become hang gliders, automobiles, robots, and much more. Gene Barretta cleverly shows how Leonardo’s ideas—many inspired by his love of nature—foreshadowed modern inventions, offering a window into the future.
Gene Barretta is the author and illustrator of Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin, and Dear Deer, which was a Notable Children’s Book in the Language Arts and listed on the Parenting Magazine Mom-Tested Books of the Year List. He holds a B.F.A. in Film Studies from New York University, and has worked for many years in film and television production. He lives in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, with his wife and son.
 |
Flight Behavior Barbara Kingsolver Harper |
 |
The Art Forger Barbara Shapiro Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill |
 |
Sweeth Tooth Ian McEwan Nan A. Talese |
 |
The Light Between Oceans ML Steadman Scribner |
