Yvonne Clark and Her Engineering Spark - by Allen R Wells (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

Based on a true story, this inspiring picture book is about a curious, tinkering girl who grew up to become one of the first Black female engineers for NASA - for fans of Ada Twist, Scientist and Counting on Katherine.

Yvonne Clark had an engineering spark--an instinct for figuring out how things worked.

Broken lamp? She screwed, rewired, and wrenched until...light!
Wrecked radio? She twisted, snipped, and hammered until...music!
Clogged furnace? She picked, plucked, and cleared until...heat!

When she grew up, Yvonne's problem-solving power took her to NASA, where fellow engineers had a serious problem with the Saturn V rocket's F-1 engine: It had hot spots--high temperatures in the engine.

Can Yvonne Clark and her engineering spark solve the problem?

In an electric tribute, Allen R. Wells artfully tells the life story of his favorite engineering professor who also happened to be one of our nation's most influential African American engineers. DeAndra Hodge's bright illustrations explode with energy, matching the vibrance of Yvonne as a creative child and following her rise to NASA and beyond.

Review Quotes

"A buoyant profile of Yvonne Clark (1929-2019), a lifelong tinkerer with a knack for making everything work better, from the family toaster to giant rockets... Inspirational fare for aspiring engineers and scientists." --Kirkus

"Bright coloring enlivens Hodge's slick, chunky digital artwork... and pages bedazzled with comic book-style stars amplify the text's snappy, often punning articulation of how passion's "spark" can yield superhero-like powers." --Publishers Weekly

"Cheerful cartoonlike illustrations effectively convey Yvonne's curiosity... an inspiring tribute to a woman who knew herself and followed her dreams." --Booklist

About the Author

Allen R. Wells is an author and engineer. He was born in Jackson, Mississippi. He studied Architectural Engineering at Tennessee State University in Nashville. He is the author of It's Pride, Baby! and Yvonne Clark and Her Engineering Spark. He currently lives in Virginia.

DeAndra Hodge is an illustrator and character designer based in Washington D.C. She graduated with a Bachelors in Fine Art from the University of Montevallo. She is the illustrator of Yvonne Clark and Her Engineering Spark by Allen R. Wells. DeAndra grew up in Huntsville, Alabama, a.k.a "Rocket City" where Yvonne Clark spent a summer working on the Saturn V booster engine.