Starring Mary Myers as Carlotta
Daredevil Aeronaut and Scientist
A TRUE TALE WITH
A CHERRY ONÂ TOP
Calkins Creek
(Astra Books for Young Readers)
(pub. 4.16.2024)
48 pages
Ages 7 - 10
Author: Sue Ganz-Schmitt
   Illustrator: Iacopo Bruno
Character: Mary Myers
Overview:
" In the 1850s, proper young ladies were supposed to keep their feet on the ground (literally and metaphorically), but Mary dreamed of flying. Luckily, she married Carl Myers, a balloon enthusiast whose dreams were just as lofty as hers. Together, they designed and constructed balloons of all shapes and sizes, a difficult and dangerous job that required knowledge of chemistry, engineering, and meteorology.
But how could they know which balloon designs worked best? They needed someone adventurous who could do balloon tricks for crowds while recording flight data. Mary knew just the person . . . herself! She gave herself the stage name Carlotta and anxiously awaited her first flight. Would she make it into the air? Could she collect the data they needed? Mary battled thick clouds and bone-chilling cold, but she went higher and farther than she hoped, and returned ready for her next flight."
Tantalizing taste:
"At first, she was buoyant! But as the weekend crept closer, Carlotta's mood plummeted. She'd promised to pilot her balloon one mile up. And to stay aloft for five miles or thirty minutes. With zero flight experience, a lot could go wrong.
Carlotta dissolved her dark clouds by imagining herself dancing with the currents over an enchanted view of Earth...
'The day came,' she noted, 'a misty, moisty, miserable, rainy 'Fourth,' dampening all my expectations of a delightful tour.'"
And something more: The section, "Carlotta Retires" at the back of the book explains: "By forty-one, Carlotta was weary of the ups and downs of faraway fairgrounds and exhibitions. She was ready to drop anchor and retire. Sort of ... The Myers bought a farm in Frankfort, New York. Instead of growing food, they grew balloons... Carlotta and Carl's business swelled until most of the balloons sold in the US came rom the Balloon Farm."