Loading...
32nd out of 89 books
—
12 voters
My rating:
add to my books
Pop!: The Invention of Bubble Gum
by
Meghan Mccarthy (Goodreads Author)
Gum. It’s been around for centuries—from the ancient Greeks to the American Indians, everyone’s chewed it. But the best kind of gum—bubble gum!—wasn’t invented until 1928, when an enterprising young accountant at Fleer Gum and Candy used his spare time to experiment with different recipes. Bubble-blowing kids everywhere will be delighted with Megan McCarthy’s entertai...more
Hardcover, 40 pages
Published
April 5th 2011
by Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
(first published May 4th 2010)
There is a good chance some of your friends read this book. Sign in to see!
sign in »
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
239)
This is a fun picture book that outlines the creation of bubble gum. People had been chewing on various materials for thousands of years, but it wasn't until Walter Diemer concocted a recipe for dubble bubble that bubble gum was born in 1928. It's a product that most children (and even adults) enjoy, so this is a nonfiction book that many children would be interested in reading.
The narrative is written in an understandable and not overly detailed way, providing just enough informat...more
The narrative is written in an understandable and not overly detailed way, providing just enough informat...more
Pop!: The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan Mccarthy tells of the invention of bubble gum by accountant Walter Diemer in Philadelphia in the late 1920's.
The text in the main part of the book is in a large font that is in a contrasting color to the background. The text should be appealing to young readers. At the end of the book is information on the inventor, fascinating facts about gum, and a bibliography of material that was quoted.
The cartoon-like illustrations should ...more
The text in the main part of the book is in a large font that is in a contrasting color to the background. The text should be appealing to young readers. At the end of the book is information on the inventor, fascinating facts about gum, and a bibliography of material that was quoted.
The cartoon-like illustrations should ...more
Abigail
rated it
Recommends it for:
Bubble-Gum Lovers / Kids Who Love to Read About Inventors
Recommended to Abigail by:
The Picture-Book Club
Picture-book author/artist Meghan McCarthy, whose non-fiction selections for the younger set include such titles as Astronaut Handbook and City Hawk: The Story of Pale Male, turns her attention here to the invention of that childhood favorite, bubble gum! Emphasizing that gum itself dates back to the ancients - the classical Greeks liked to chew the sap of the mastic tree - McCarthy focuses her story on the Fleer candy factory, in 1920s Philadelphia, where accountant Walter Diemer became involve...more
view all 4 comments
First off, Maxine (age 5) LOVES this book. She's wanted to hear it every night, twice, for the last week and a half. We both know it by heart.
I think I reviewed Meghan McCarthy's Seabiscuit on goodreads -- McCarthy has a way of drawing faces that's so funny and endearing. And I love that she's made a name for herself in non-fiction picture books -- Max also loved her Astronaut Handbook (about what astronaut training is like) and Josie really liked her book about the War of the World...more
I think I reviewed Meghan McCarthy's Seabiscuit on goodreads -- McCarthy has a way of drawing faces that's so funny and endearing. And I love that she's made a name for herself in non-fiction picture books -- Max also loved her Astronaut Handbook (about what astronaut training is like) and Josie really liked her book about the War of the World...more
Author/artist Meghan McCarthy used bold acrylic paints to illustrate her informative story of bubble gum. While kids love what is often a pink square of gum used to chew, blow and pop bubbles, very few mw know its history. Now, thanks to McCarthy they can learn how difficult it was to invent.
Our story begins in a factory owned by the Fleer family during the 1920s. This family made large quantities of gum and candy. One employee was Walter Diemer, an accountant who could easily balan...more
Our story begins in a factory owned by the Fleer family during the 1920s. This family made large quantities of gum and candy. One employee was Walter Diemer, an accountant who could easily balan...more
Pop!: The Invention of Bubble Gum is a great non-fiction book that is sure to delight any young reader. The story of an accountant turn bubble gum inventor. The illustrations are fun and the cover is charming with all those bubble gum chewers. I enjoy reading picture books that include more in depth history at the end of the story. I think I may have enjoyed reading this part more than the actual story itself. I am from WA state so seeing the picture of Post Alley in Pike's Place Market in Seatt...more
Cheryl's review says it wonderfully! The only thing I would add to this is that my niece definitely enjoyed Pop!, and she was very excited about and engrossed in the story. She was also quite taken with the illustrations, which are simple, but boy, do they do an excellent job of establishing time and setting! At the end of the story when Walter says that he was just satisfied that he made children happy, my niece exclaimed, "He did! I LOVE BUBBLE GUM!!" I thought that was kind of i...more
An entertaining and interesting nonfiction selection for younger readers, this story will capture students' interest. McCarthy's illustrations are charming and the text is easy to follow. Walter Diemer is an accountant for a gum and candy factory. He starts working on a new project: inventing gum that can be used to blow bubbles. Through trial and error, he stumbles onto a solution. McCarthy gives information about the history of gum and explains how the pink bubblegum we know today came to...more
Reposted from Nonfiction Navigators discussion http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/6719...
****
So I made a comment recently on Twitter about my feelings about one page of Pop! reinforcing stereotypes of American Indians.
Rather than trying to explain my feelings 140 characters at a time, I will attempt an explanation here.
Please know as I begin this post... I really like the book Pop! I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.
However, here is part of why I did not give it ...more
****
So I made a comment recently on Twitter about my feelings about one page of Pop! reinforcing stereotypes of American Indians.
Rather than trying to explain my feelings 140 characters at a time, I will attempt an explanation here.
Please know as I begin this post... I really like the book Pop! I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.
However, here is part of why I did not give it ...more
If you are a fan of random facts and crazy inventions, Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy is the book for you. This nonfiction title reads more like a picture book, but throughout the story and in the back of the book are amazing quotations and facts about the history of gum. For example, did you know that Ancient Greeks chewed sap from trees?
Walter Diemer began as an accountant next door to an experimental laboratory- a secret lab where a recipe for chewing gum was ...more
Walter Diemer began as an accountant next door to an experimental laboratory- a secret lab where a recipe for chewing gum was ...more
Ann
rated it
I think this would be a fascinating topic for children (I'm sure I would have loved to learn about the invention of bubble gum when I was young!).
-note this is not about the invention of gum, but *bubble* gum. Though we do get a quick history of how long gum has been around for-
I found the story interesting, especially the fact that the inventor wasn't even in R&D and that he kept going when everyone else had given up (there's a great message - though nice and subtly written). H...more
-note this is not about the invention of gum, but *bubble* gum. Though we do get a quick history of how long gum has been around for-
I found the story interesting, especially the fact that the inventor wasn't even in R&D and that he kept going when everyone else had given up (there's a great message - though nice and subtly written). H...more
Lisa Vegan
rated it
Recommends it for:
kids who like history & kids who don’t like history; fans of bubble gum
This is a terrific idea for a children’s picture book history book; it’s definitely a fun subject for kids. The story of how bubble gum was created is interesting and shows a bit of the history, science, math, business, and a lot about serendipity around the creation of bubble gum and of gum in general. The invention of bubble gum is a good example of how experimentation is often part of new discoveries.
The illustrations feel very 1920s and since bubble gum was discovered in the late ...more
The illustrations feel very 1920s and since bubble gum was discovered in the late ...more
What fun! After loving McCarthy's Astronaut Handbook I was delighted to discover her latest book featuring that most delightful of creations, bubble gum. This is the story of the man who invented bubble gum in the 1920s and how it saved a company and brightened children's lives. It also shows the history of chewing gum. The story itself was maybe four stars of me, but I really fell in love with the Author's Note, which is full of charming, humorous and fascinating tidbits about bubble gum an...more
My kids loved hearing how bubble gum was invented and learning that gum itself (or similar substances) have been around for centuries. I liked that it showed the determination that it took to invent bubble gum...it didn't happen by accident and it didn't happen overnight...it took quite awhile and yet Walter Diemer didn't give up. The endnotes about bubble gum and about Diemer were also very interesting. I'm glad they were included. The illustrations weren't my favorite, but my kids liked th...more
Kids that love to chew bubble gum will love learning the history behind the sticky pink stuff. This is the story of Walter Diemer an account at the Fleer Factory who develops bubble gum when the science lab is moved next door to his office. The book focuses on the history of bubble gum specifically, but also talks briefly about the history of chewing gum as well. Meghan McCarthy’s writing is fun and interesting, and her whimsical, colorful illustrations are a delightful accompaniment to the s...more
The history of bubble gum is told in such a simple and enjoyable way that kids will enjoy getting a little history lesson! The colorful pictures tell us of the different things that people have chewed as gum throughout history, but mainly focuses on Walter Diemer and his invention of the classic Dubble Bubble. The book teaches more than just history as Walter spends months trying to invent the bubble gum. Walter's persistence teaches us to keep trying when faced with hard things.
McCarthy’s fun informational book on Walter Diemer and his determination to invent bubble gum is sure to hold the interest of young readers. They will be able to relate to having ideas that do not seem to work and will hopefully learn that determination is key to success. Typically, we tend to focus on a handful of inventors and so many creative people, like Diemer, go unnoticed; this book breaks that cycle. I will be looking forward to McCarthy’s future works.
I don't know if I just have an issue with nonfiction written for younger readers in general or if I just find this year's award-winning selections to be mostly subpar. I honestly thought this was just a story for most of it and remember feeling rather confused when I realized it was true. I'm also not much of a gum chewer and I don't really know how to blow bubbles, so perhaps that affected my judgment of the book as well.
Gum has been around for ages (as in Ancient Greece age), but BUBBLE gum was a relatively recent invention. The perseverance of Walter, an accountant-turned-gum-experimenter, brought us the fun chewy product we still love today. He was the one who first made it pink - that was the color on hand that day!
Brightly painted cartoony illustrations with heavy black line add to the fun feeling of this nonfiction picture book.
Brightly painted cartoony illustrations with heavy black line add to the fun feeling of this nonfiction picture book.
A nonfiction story about the invention of bubble gum. Hey, thanks Walter Diemer.
More of a story than I expected; you could use it for story time. Actually, I might use it as part of my second grade F/NF unit.
Also included (in a two page spread at the back of the book): short biography about Diemer, facts and more facts about gum, and a listing of sources for the quotes used in the book. Wahoo!
More of a story than I expected; you could use it for story time. Actually, I might use it as part of my second grade F/NF unit.
Also included (in a two page spread at the back of the book): short biography about Diemer, facts and more facts about gum, and a listing of sources for the quotes used in the book. Wahoo!
I was worried the text would be too overwhelming for my 2nd and 3rd graders, but it's not terribly text-heavy. The illustrations made me smile. There are a lot of great facts, including how bubble gum got its color!
Um, so Meghan McCarthy also illustrated a book called City Hawk, and now I'M DYING TO KNOW if it's the same City Hawk as the Level M nonfiction book we use for Benchmark testing.
Um, so Meghan McCarthy also illustrated a book called City Hawk, and now I'M DYING TO KNOW if it's the same City Hawk as the Level M nonfiction book we use for Benchmark testing.
This is one of my favorite types of book, a simple non-fiction picture book. The kind that takes what could be a dry paragraph and tells it like a story, bringing the few bits of information out to make them more interesting and alive. The downside is that these books are not really good for the one thing that kids seem mostly to want non-fiction books for: reports. In some ways these narrative non-fiction books would circulate better with the picture books, because while this tells a true story...more
Jill
rated it
Booktalk:
Did you ever wonder why bubble gum was pink?
Did you know that Double Bubble gum was included in ration kits for American soldier during WWII?
Do you know how long chewing gum has been around?
To find out the true and interesting story of gum, read Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy.
Did you ever wonder why bubble gum was pink?
Did you know that Double Bubble gum was included in ration kits for American soldier during WWII?
Do you know how long chewing gum has been around?
To find out the true and interesting story of gum, read Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy.
This is such a neat topic. Children love reading about inventions and the start of bubble gum might be something very new to them. There's lots of history packed into the story. A fun question is why was Walter's Double Bubble pink? The answer, well, you'll know for sure when you read this book.
Alyson (Kid Lit Frenzy)
rated it
This is a fun book for Kinder to second grade (though older kids will enjoy it as well)about how bubble gum was invented. Not chewing gum but bubble gum. Great book, easy to understand, and nice couple of pages on facts at the end. Good for a classroom library.
The artwork is great. But the story seems kind of choppy. I did learn that "the sugar in the gum makes it harder to blow big bubbles because it doesn't stretch well." Also that college-educated women in their 30s chewed the most gum in 2006. Who knew?
Good nonfiction for early elementary kids: fun illustrations, interesting facts without being text-heavy, and the most awesome topic ever -- BUBBLE GUM! Definitely building a storytime around this one for my regular first grade classes.
Sometimes the text is a little dry but it could be used in story time with the bubblegum song. The illustrations are fun and colorful. E664.6 MCC
Full of fun historical facts, this book is the true story of how bubble gum was invented.
Full of fun historical facts, this book is the true story of how bubble gum was invented.
Simple non-fiction that will be of high interest to middle grades. Super to use for an intro lesson on taking notes. Use it on the projector as you teach students the pertinent facts to jot down. They will love the subject matter!
Really a top-notch 'non-fiction for beginners' book. The main 'story' could be enjoyed by toddlers; the author's notes are rich enough for big kids and even adults. Clearly told interesting story about perserverance.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Children's book author of many wonderful fiction and nonfiction books for young readers, including the below following. Meghan's books have won the IRA-CBC Children's Choice, ALA Notable, Kirkus Reviews Reviewer's Choice, Booklist Best Books, NYPL 100 Best Books, SLJ Best Books, and so on. Blah blah blah, what Meghan really wants to do is drive really fast and jump in really long grass until she g...more
More about Meghan Mccarthy...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
