The Unexpected Light of Thomas Alva Edison

From New York Times bestselling author and news anchor Raymond Arroyo comes the first book in the Turnabout Tales series—a picture book biography of one of America’s most famous inventors, Thomas Alva Edison, and a story about how a small spark can create a big light.

No one thought much of young Thomas Alva Edison. He couldn’t focus at school and caused trouble around the house. But where others saw a distracted and mischievous boy, his mother saw imagination and curiosity. At only seven years old, Al, as he was called as a young child, was educated by his mother, who oversaw his rigorous at-home education while also allowing him great freedom to explore and dream. Those early years of encouragement and loving guidance formed the man who would apply those valuable lessons as well as his rich imagination to inventing the phonograph, the motion picture camera, the light bulb, and more.

In The Unexpected Light of Thomas Alva Edison readers will:

• meet the larger-than-life personality of Thomas Alva Edison
• hear an inspiring tale of an underdog overcoming all the odds
• learn about the power of curiosity and imagination
• take a carefully researched and actively told romp through history

The Unexpected Light of Thomas Alva Edison includes:

• an annotated list of resources and suggested reading
• realistic illustrations by artist Kristina Gehrmann
• an author’s note by Raymond Arroyo, the author of the bestselling The Spider Who Saved Christmas

The Turnabout Tales series highlights little-known yet fascinating stories of historical figures who went from underdog to hero, and the adults who inspired them to be true to themselves and do big things that changed the world.