The Handiest Things in the World

For Ages: 4 - 8

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The mother of invention is right at your fingertips! Ten knuckles, two thumbs, two flat palms, and all those fingers—but our hands can be so much more.

They were once the first pair of earmuffs, a primitive sun visor, and a convenient set of chopsticks. The work done by hands centuries and centuries ago has paved the way for many of our favorite and most useful tools. The always clever Andrew Clements reminds us all that the mother of much invention is right at our fingertips.

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Atheneum Books for Young Readers |
48 pages |
ISBN 9781416961666 |
May 2010 |
Grades P - 3

$16.99 List Price

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Praise

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“This unusual concept book looks at all the things that hands can do and the tools that help do them better. On a typical double-page spread, two short rhyming sentences are paired with photos. The first shows achild’s hands... ”

– Carolyn Phelan, BOOKLIST, March 1, 2010

“What are the handiest things in the world? Hands that hold dogs, hands that count, hands that pick up good foods to eat and hands that [t]ap in rhythm, keep the beat. But Clements makes the point that our oldest tools also lead to... ”

– KIRKUS, April 15, 2010

“The title and artfully composed cover photo of a butterfly perched on a child’s cupped hand offer clues to what lies within this warmhearted and deceptively simple book. Clements (Dogku) and Jaramillo pay tribute to what... ”

– are never identified in the text, offering opportunities for kids to supply the names. A final image of two people holding hands reinforces the fact that, no matter what new technologies are created, these appendages remain indispensable: “For sh

“This fresh take on an often-overlooked appendage compares hands with everyday tools. Eating with fingers and then with chopsticks, walking a dog off a leash and then on, catching an insect with bare hands and then in a net, and... ”

– SLJ, May 2010

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