Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Hedy Lamarr and a Secret Communication System
Illustrator: Cynthia Martin , Anne Timmons
Nonfiction graphic novel Series
For ages 8 to 10
Capstone Press, 2006 ISBN: 978-0736896412
Hedy Keisler was a famous German film star who was married to Fritz Mandal, a very wealthy weapons manufacturer. Hedy's husband was happy to build weapons for the Nazis because he was convinced that they would be able to conquer "all of Europe," and in the process they would make him even richer than he already was. Hedy hated the Nazis and there came a time when she decided that she wanted to escape from her life. And so, in 1937, Hedy found a way to escape from Nazi Germany, making her way to England where she found work performing in plays. While on a ship going to America, Hedy met the director of one of the big American film studios. Louis B. Mayer gave her contract to act in his movies and he changed her name to Hedy Lamarr.
Hedy became a successful and very famous movie star, and yet she did not forget about her former life in Germany. She worried about the war against the Nazi's and wished that there was something she could do to help defeat them.
When had lived with him Hedy had listened to many of the conversations that took place in her husband's house, and she knew some of the Nazi's plans. She came up with an idea that would, in the end, help America in the future, though not in the way she had planned.
This Graphic Library title uses a graphic novel style format to tell the story of a woman who not only delighted the world with her beauty, charm, and acting skills, but who also used her head to come up with an invention that has had a huge impact on the world. The text in the narrative is easy to follow, and a section at the back of the book provides young readers with more information about Hedy Lamarr and her invention.
With their Graphic Library titles, Capstone Press makes stories from history accessible and interesting for young readers.
