Toys!: Amazing Stories Behind Some Great Inventions

Did you know that ...
-- Each year, Lionel Trains produces more than a million engines, cabooses, and other railroad cars? (If hitched together, they would make a toy train about fifty miles long.)
-- King Louis XIV, Napoleon, and Queen Victoria all had collections of wind-up toys?
-- In late nineteenth-century France, more than five million tin soldiers were made from discarded sardine containers?
-- The youngest international champion in table tennis was eight-year-old Joy Foster of Jamaica?
-- Play-Doh originally came only in white? (There's a good reason for this: it started out as a product for cleaning wallpaper!)

A fresh, intriguing look at the stories behind great toy inventions.
""Originally, Play-Doh only came in white. There's a good reason for this. You see, Play-Doh didn't start out as a toy. It started out as a product for cleaning wallpaper.""
Have you ever wondered who invented Lego, Mr. Potato Head, or toy trains? Here are the fascinating stories behind these toy inventions and many others. Learn why the see-saw was popular with the Romans, how the Slinky was used during the Vietnam War, and the reason Raggedy Ann has a red heart on her chest that says "I love you." From dolls and checkers to pinball and the modern video game, there's a wide selection here for boys and girls alike.
With humor and wit, this intriguing book serves up slices of cultural history that will inspire young readers to start thinking up their own toy inventions.