(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Wes Lowe. Galat clearly explains the basics of how early navigation worked, the limitations of sailing with just latitude as a marker, and how one man solved the longitude puzzle. Lowe's paintings help set time and place, but human figures are stiff. The complex concepts are best suited for older readers beyond the traditional picture-book age with understanding of math, science, and geography. Timeline.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Erik Blegvad. Spare prose outlines John Harrison's forty-year quest to determine longitude on a moving ship. Although the emphasis is on Harrison's doggedness, Borden presents the scientific problem deftly. Blegvad decorates the pages with both general scenes of the times (early eighteenth century) and specific incidents from the narrative. An afterword tells the fates of the principal players.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2004