Customer Reviews

Sneakier Uses for Everyday Things: How to Turn a Calculator into a Metal Detector, Carry a Survival Kit in a Shoestring, Make a Gas Mask with a ... a James Bond Spy Jacket with Everyday Thing

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I'm not sure why some readers don't seem to understand that Cy Tymony obviously wrote this book series for kids. Boys, most likely, under the age of 10 or 11.

An audience of that age will find this book quite interesting, like its prequel. I'll repeat, if you've got a Ph.D. in physics, don't buy it. And if you considered the idea, do tell us, how'd you get that Ph.D., again?

The point of this book is to set kids along a discovery path---to find capabilities in everyday objects they might not otherwise have recognized, to think outside the box.

And while not all the suggestions here provide the least bit of interest to an adult, I don't get why anyone would have bought this book expecting to reap a science degree from it. For Pete's sake! This title, like that of Tymony's first book, is also a dead giveaway.

If this book were published by Brown Paper School, like The Book of Think: Or, How to Solve a Problem Twice Your Size, it would also have five stars from all customer reviewers. All right, so Tymony should have labeled the book "for kids" for the dim witted among us. But otherwise, it too deserves 5 stars.

Kids get a big kick out of making something from nothing. Once upon a time, a child could be happy with an old Quaker Oats box as a drum.

In this age when most electronic gadgets hail from China, it's nice to find an author suggesting constructive toys for curious kids.

It teaches them how to look at and listen to the world around them, even if the stuff they make from this book is otherwise "useless."

This is a good bathroom book, but a little too cheesy for adult readers, but there are some neat activities.

I bought this along with the author's first "sneaky" book (I'd give the first one two stars) and now wish I had saved my money. Cheesy is the best description I can give. The sneaky uses are completely obvious and, in many cases, too flimsy to survive construction. The author apparently is fascinated with safety pins, magnets, etc. but who needs a book to explain how to make a wire out of a paperclip? Also, the art is as amateurish as the ideas. Not exactly rocket science.

This review is for all three books in this series. The first note is they are clearly written for the 13 year old and under crowd. For them, it should stimulate the creative scientific gene in them, and open their imaginations to harmless scientific experimentation. So if there is a young burgeonoing, tinkering youngster in your life, these books could be the spark to spur them into some educational fun.

These books have gotten better and better. Nothing to sit down and read in front of the fire on a cold evening, but fun to pick up and flip through every now and again.

Book bought for fun. Styrofoam speaker idea is cool. Some of the ideas are a real stretch but I enjoyed the book. Not as many ideas that I could use in my classes, but overall, worthwhile.

The uniqueness of this book is in it's humor and lively spirit. I'd recommend it to anyone seeking odd knowledge.

This is a fun book for kids that invites imagination and problem solving. My kids love to use things from the recycle bin to make "inventions" and this book gave them some more ideas. Great for the under 12 crowd. Good for variety, too.

It was a gift..arrived fast and well packaged...exactly as described..you can't go wrong with this shipper..fun for all ages, it was for a 19 yo and he liked it.

this book is fine. some ideas are are you crazy? and some are this I can see useing. some are toys some are usefull gadets. this is a fun book and I would reckmend this book to anyone.