A delightful story that reminds us where the source of true inspiration lies
by Kathleen T. Pelley

Bank Street Best Book

Colorado Book Award Winner

Pictures by Michael Chesworth
Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ISBN: 0-374-33606-7
Ages 4-8
Reading Sample #1: (length: 8 secs.)
Reading Sample #2: (length: 15 secs.)

"Hector McGregor lived in a higgledy-piggledy house with a cheery wife, five children, and a hen called Hattie."

Because he can invent just about anything to make the world a little better, folks call him Inventor McGregor. In between his work, he likes to stroll down the winding lane behind his house, where he sings a snippet of a song, paints a picture, and twirls a whirl of a fling.

But when he takes a real job in the city away from his daily distractions, Inventor McGregor finds it's not so easy to invent. Deprived of his usual diversions, he discovers the true source of his inspiration...

Reviews

"Kathleen T. Pelley brings her Scottish sensibility to this rousting tale about an inventor who learns that the diversions he loves so dearly are the very things that make him so inventive. Buoyed by the energetic, cartoonlike illustrations of Michael Chesworth, this fun, light-hearted tale offers a wonderful life lesson... "
- Rocky Mountain News

"The sprightly pastel drawings are as lighthearted as the text, which bursts with creative energy."
- Kirkus Reviews

"In an uproarious picture book... Preschoolers will love the nonsense of the contraptions, beautifully captured in the sound and the rhythm of the storytelling, with short, sharp sentences about how McGregor fixes squeaky skates, wobbly wagons, tangled kites, knotted yo-yos, headless dolls, and footless soldiers. The wild, double-page watercolor spreads celebrate the farcical gadgets the inventor uses as they show the gluing and oiling and hammering of his work and his joyful home."
- Booklist

Available at bookstores and at booksense.com, bn.com, and borders.com.