Tundra's Great Idea Series are early-reader biographies. The third book
in the series introduces the fascinating Margaret Knight. Known as
Mattie, she was different from most American girls living in 1850. She
loved to make things with wood and made the best kites and sleds in
town. Her father died when she was only three and by the time she was
twelve she was working at the local cotton mill, alongside her two older
brothers. One day she saw a worker get injured by a shuttle which had
come loose from the giant loom, and the accident inspired her to invent
a stop-motion device. It was to be the first of her many inventions.
Margaret devoted her life to inventing, and is best known for the
clever, practical, paper bag. When she died in 1914 she had ninety
inventions to her name and over twenty patents, astounding
accomplishments for a woman of her day. Monica Kulling deftly uses
easy-to-read language and lots of dialogue to bring an amazing,
inspiring woman to life.