Genius Projects for Dad and the Kids
By Scott Bedford
Workman Publishing, 330 pages, $18.95
Made by Dad is probably one of the coolest, most creative books you will see. It contains 67 blueprints for either making stuff with your kids or for your kids. The book opens with a “toolbox” section containing suggestions for materials, tools, tips and techniques. There are seven chapters organized into fun topics such as suspect science, geeky gadgets and covert creations. One of the beautiful things about this book is that you do not need a slew of highly complicated power tools; almost everything you need will already be in your house. Each project is assigned a level: easy, medium or tricky and contains a list of materials. The directions are a combination of drawings, step-by- step instructions and photographs. This reviewer believes that your kids will be fascinated just by the drawings and directions before they ever actually see the finished product. There is a bit of intrigue and mystery to the way the directions are given with arrows going every which way and lots of details such as measurements and angles.
“You don’t need a workshop or exotic materials (put your soldering iron away!) to make cool stuff with your kids–just a twinkle in your eye and, of course, this book in your hand.”
This book makes father-kid time ripe with excitement and anticipation and even if the project does not look like the example in the book, this reviewer bets that you will have tons of fun getting to whatever end result you and your kids develop. This book could easily be a catalyst for the school science project, entertainment for a rainy afternoon or the makings of the next astronaut or engineer…it is that fun and creative! The appendix contains the templates for all of the book’s projects. The most difficult decision you will face with this book is which project to choose first!
Reviewed by Seniye Groff
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