Wait and see

Mighty Herman is a little man who keeps failing at invention after invention, but he’s not giving up. He builds big things that flop, makes bold machines that backfire, until at last he comes up with something everyone actually uses — the safety pin.

Henstra’s illustrations feel old-timey but sharp: fine pen lines, washes of ochre and grey, with touches of cooler tones that set up a warm–cold contrast like a signature trick. It’s clever, slightly absurd, funny in its failures — the kind of book where the small win ends up feeling better than any grand invention.