Families who loved The Great Horse-less Carriage Race by Michael Dooling often look for books with a similar feel. These 20 recommendations were selected for their similarity in style, theme, and reading level.
Reach for this book when your child feels discouraged by a project that isn't going as planned or when they are obsessed with how things work. This historical narrative follows the very first American automobile race on a snowy Thanksgiving Day in 1895. It captures a moment in time when technology was messy, unreliable, and prone to failure, yet driven forward by incredible human persistence. Through the story of six inventors battling freezing temperatures and mechanical breakdowns, children learn that innovation is rarely a smooth ride. It is an excellent choice for kids aged 6 to 10 who enjoy engineering and history. Beyond the facts of the race, the book emphasizes the grit required to see a vision through to the end, even when the 'finish line' seems impossible to reach. It provides a wonderful bridge between science and history, showing that every modern machine began as a difficult, snowy experiment.
