LIGHTS OUT

Another blue-ribbon winner from Geisert, this one is a kinetic wonder. The first page sets the stage for the mechanical caper: “My parents make me turn off the light at eight. They know I’m afraid to go to sleep unless the light is on. They said, ‘If you can figure something out—go ahead.’ So I did.” As the innocent-looking piglet pulls the light cord, it launches a series of wordless scenes depicting a Rube Goldberg contraption setting off a domino effect that finally ends in the basement where pulleys and levers release a bat and ball rigged up to the third floor, turning off the lamp beside the bed—just as the pig has fallen asleep. Kids and adults alike will be enthralled as they trace each of the 29 steps. Combining the fascination of A Giant Ball of String (2002) with the precision of The Etcher’s Studio (1997) and the reader involvement of Mystery (2003), the actions and reactions are realistic enough to wonder if Geisert built an actual working model. From the mechanical drawings on the bedroom walls to the cutaway scenes detailing each piece of the apparatus, this is imaginatively, ingeniously inventive. (legend of each step) (Picture book. 7-10)