Meet J. Armand Bombardier, writtne by Elizabeth MacLeod and illustrated by Mike Deas. Scholastic Canada, 2022. $18.99 ages 9 and up

 "The B7 changed how people lived. They could now 
travel in bad weather. Stores used it to make deliveries. 
Phone and electricity workers depended on the B7 to 
keep people connected. 

In 1937 Armand changed his garage's name from Garage
Bombardier to L'Auto-Neige Bombardier - Bombardier
Snowmobile. He created many jobs and hired people from the community. Business was good, but challenges were coming." 

J. Armand grew up in a small village in Quebec - a village that was too often cut off from the outside world because winter storms and snowfall made it impossible to use the roads. He was an inventor from childhood, always looking for ways to create a vehicle that could drive through the snow that so often blanketed his village. 

"With every one, Armand made improvements and invented new parts. Each vehicle was a little 
better than the last. But none of them worked reliably."

In one alarming experiment for his parents, he took the family car apart, knowing that he could put it back together. He wanted to know how it worked. His passion was mechanics and that interest led to a move to Montreal where he learned all he could learn, studying science, technology and traction as he also made a living working in a garage. 

He returned home to open his own garage at 19. Armand worked hard. In the winter he continued his work on creating a successful vehicle for snow travel. As a married man with children, and after losing a young son to illness because of impassible roads, he became even more determined. He did not stop until his inventive dreams were finally realized with a variety of useful and needed machines. In the 1950s, engines were small enough to fulfill his lifelong dream - a Ski-Dog, accidentally advertised as a "Ski-Doo". The rest is history. 

"The Ski-Doo snowmobile was one of Armand's favourite inventions - it was fun to ride. Lots of people loved it. They bought them and joined clubs to set up Ski-Doo snowmobile trails and races."

In this tenth book in the Scholastic Canada Biography series, Liz MacLeod and Mike Deas do what they have so successfully done in previous books. Ms. MacLeod presents a life story in friendly, accessible text to tell readers about a successful and admirable Canadian. Mike Deas creates appealing and telling artwork that allows readers to see Armand as he works diligently to make life better for many.