Quick, Annie, Give Me a Catchy Line!: A Story of Samuel F.B. Morse

I want to thank Robert Quakenbush for taking the time to write Quick, Annie! Give Me a Catchy Line! It is very well written and easy to understand, especially for younger children. This book has colorful pictures and funny cartoons on every page, which help explain the story. I had a great time reading it to my seven-year-old sister! This book tells of how young Samuel Morse always loved to draw (even when he was supposed to be studying like his younger brothers.) It describes how he first became an artist, painting portraits for a living, and then after studying art in Europe came home to America aboard the steamboat Sully. While on the Sully, after learning how electricity would not be slowed by traveling long distances, he came up with the idea that made him famous -The Electric Telegraph, a way to send messages instantaneously. This book even has a cartoon about how he drove the other passengers crazy with his inventive talk. The book then shows how his modern telegraph and its wires were constructed, why Annie gave him the catchy line for his first telegram, and what the first words on it were. This book also tells of how he was the first person in America to figure out photography and to be able to take photographs of people, not just still landscapes. Overall, Quick, Annie! Give Me a Catchy Line! gives readers a good explanation of Samuel Morse's life and accomplishments. There were two aspects I didn't like about this book. One was that it stated how Morse wanted to invent the telegraph so he could be rich, and devote the rest of his life toward painting without a worry or care. It never mentioned that he also wanted to invent it to benefit the people of his country. With his telegraph, people could send messages instantly, and could, for example, know right away if a loved one died or when a war was actually over. Quakenbush's book fails to recognize the selfless reasons why Morse wanted to invent the telegraph. Even more importantly, the author left out that Samuel Morse was a very strong Christian all through his life, and his Christian beliefs motivated his actions. He gave the first money he received from the telegraph to a church in Washington, so that a Sunday school could begin there. He gave generously to missionaries, religious institutions, and to schools that trained ministers. I think the author should have mentioned Samuel Morse's Christianity in his book, since it was such an important part in his life. In spite of these problems, I would personally recommend this book for younger readers, because it is so entertaining, while teaching them at the same time about such a great man in American history!