Wouter van Reek
A friend sent me this book when I was having trouble coming up with gift ideas for my five year old. He really enjoys arts and crafts, but gets frustrated while trying to come up with things to make. I mentioned he needed a boost in the creative department and she said she knew just the right book to jump start his imagination. Boy, was she right!
Coppernickel is delighted to discover his very favorite great big book of inventions has a blank page at the back of the book. Although his dog Tungsten wants to go outside and play, Coppernickel insists they must fill that last page with an invention of their own - something useful that has never been thought of before. Inspired by the other terrific inventions, he immediately starts doodling. He draws levers and pulleys, hooks and gears that will form the most amazing machine for picking high hanging elderberries.
Coppernickel's creation is so massive that it encroaches onto Tungsten's page,. Nudging it off, his faithful companion accidentally sets the machine in motion. With a crunching and hissing of gears, Coppernickel is swiftly swept up into his own creation. This machine doesn't seem to realize that he's not a high hanging elderberry! After he extricates himself, Coppernickel decides maybe a simpler approach would be better - which is exactly what Tungsten has drawn on his half of the paper.
As soon as we finished this book, we went straight to the bin of markers and colored pencils to come up with a few inventions of our own. My conclusion: if you are looking for some creative inspiration for your own children, seek the help of Coppernickel and Tungsten. And most definitely watch the video below; the creator in our house liked it so much, we watched in three times.
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