The Industrial Revolution

While we all know that large-scale industrialization began in the eighteenth century, the Industrial Revolution truly began in Germany with Johannes Gutenberg and his printing press. His innovation made it possible to mass-produce books, which spread literacy and knowledge all across Europe. It was in the eighteenth century, however, that manual labor started being replaced by what we today know as machines. First in Europe came Thomas Newcomen and James Watt and the steam engine. Then came John Kay and his flying shuttle, which led to the development of the textile industry. Then, in the United States, there was Robert Fulton and his steamboat, and Eli Whitney and his cotton gin. Finally, it was Henry Ford whose mass-produced vehicles made cars affordable to all. The Industrial Revolution continues to this day as formerly less developed countries, especially in Asia, have taken to rapid industrialization to improve their economy.


Lexile Reading Level 800L.

Lewis Helfand is a resident of Narberth, Pennsylvania and grew up wanting to write comic books. His journey to figure out how to do that has involved everything from studying sculpture and politics to traveling through Spain and Denmark to writing about adventure sports and sword making. He is currently merging all these diverse interests writing graphic novels for Campfire. Some of his recent titles include the award-winning Nelson Mandela: The Unconquerable Soul, Mother Teresa: Angel Of The Slums, They Changed the World: Edison, Tesla and Bell, They Changed the World: Crick & Watson and World War Two: Under the Shadow of the Swastika. 

A resident of New Delhi, India, Naresh Kumar describes himself as a seeker who is continuously trying to learn as much as he can, and his art is an expression of his curiosity toward the world. A firm believer in humanity, Naresh brings an experienced hand to the drawing board, and his photo-realistic style captures the subtle emotions of his characters. His work features in a number of titles from Campfire, which include World War Two: Against the Rising Sun, Genesis: From Creation to the Flood, Julius Caesar, Martin Luther King Jr.: Let Freedom Ring, and They Changed the World: Crick & Watson.