The Brilliant Calculator: How Mathematician Edith Clarke Helped Electrify America by Jan Lower

The Brilliant Calculator is a good introduction to a woman engineer whose work allows us to communicate better. For that, I am grateful.

The Brilliant Calculator: How Mathematician Edith Clarke Helped Electrify America by Jan Lower, illustrated by Susan Reagan. Calkins Creek, 2023. 44 pages.

• Reading Level: Picture books, Ages 8-10
• Recommended For: Ages 8-10

Edith Clarke had a mind for puzzles, especially if they involved math. In an age of accelerating inventions and advancements in electricity, Edith’s passion for numbers motivated her to go through college, but she didn’t stop with the usual opportunities available to women. She worked as a “computer,” solving equations for engineers, and even helped invent the slide rule calculator.

Still, that didn’t satisfy her. She tackled problems in telephone communication and power line design, developing an apparatus with a graph and “wings” that became known as the Clarke Calculator and earned her a notable place in the field of engineering.

The Brilliant Calculator is a good introduction to a woman engineer whose work allows us to communicate better. For that, I am grateful.

Overall Rating: 3.75

• Literary/Artistic Rating: 3.5
• Worldview Rating: number 4

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