Hip, hip, hooray! Marcia Williams wields her witty comic-book style to applaud the creators of inventions that changed the world — and to inspire the inventor in us all.

What are your eight favorite inventions, and who were the persevering minds behind them? In a style as vivacious and accessible as ever, Marcia Williams honors the fine folks who brought us the printing press, the steam condenser, the steam train, the electric light, all of them stepping stones to ever more awesome inventions to come. Interspersed are brief snapshots of more than a hundred other inventions, from toothpaste to toilet paper rolls, the World Wide Web to, yes, sliced bread. There's also a tribute to women inventors — the force behind such indispensable items as windshield wipers, submarine telescopes, and bulletproof vests.