Learn All About ‘Lady Edison’ in this New Picture Book!
Book Review of Beulah Has a Hunch! by Katie Mazeika (Ages 9 and up)
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Beulah has a Hunch! introduces young readers to Beulah Louise Henry, an inventor during a time when the majority of inventors were men. Beulah is interested in how things work and is disappointed when her studies cover music, etiquette, and elocution. None of her studies explain how clocks chime which isn’t great for a child with hyper-phantasia which is the ability to picture things in extreme detail.
Using her skills Buelah begins to sketch out her “hunches” or inventions that she can visualize. While sitting on her porch one day, Beulah has a hunch about parasols. What if she could create a parasol handle that could hold all the things ladies needed, reducing the need for an additional purse?
While sketching out her idea she also decides that a parasol could be even better if it could have interchangeable fabric covers! Beulah worked with a local draftsman William Woodley who was able to draw the parasol from every angle with Beulah’s input.
Buelah eventually gets her patent for the parasol but finding a manufacturer to actually make the parasol proves to be difficult. Misogyny is so prevalent in her society that Beulah has a hard time finding a partner. After building a prototype parasol herself, Buelah finally finds a manufacturer to make her products and a year later they are featured in the window at Lord & Taylor, a famous clothing store.
The parasol wasn’t the only invention that Buelah was responsible for, she created stuffed dolls with cotton instead of sawdust, sponges that floated and filled with soap plus a basting oven.
Buelah Has a Hunch! explores Beulah Henry’s early life and her determination to pursue her inventive dreams, even when it meant immersing herself in a predominantly male-dominated field. With an unwavering spirit and a house full of tools, she developed numerous devices that sought to simplify and improve everyday life for her community!
However, with her unorthodox approach to invention and her refusal to adhere to conventional gender roles, Beulah Louise Henry faced intense criticism and skepticism from her contemporaries. This picture book delves into the societal and gender biases that she had to confront, showing the courage and resilience she demonstrated in her journey to bring her inventions to life.
Illustrations portraying synesthesia are shown with different colors swirling around the pages creating vivid images. The majority of the pages show Buelah sketching or trying to convince people to give her inventions a try. I did enjoy real photos of Buelah at the end of the book and a summary of her life and inventions. Beulah Has a Hunch! is a lovely book about the resiliency of “Lady Edison”, aka Beulah Lousie Henry.
Published by Simon & Schuster
Genre — Children’s Fiction
Rating — ⭐⭐⭐⭐
