Ainissa Ramirez—Spark: Jim West's Electrifying Adventures in Creating the Microphone

Advance copy: Backstories on books by NASW members

SPARK:
JIM WEST’S ELECTRIFYING ADVENTURES
IN CREATING THE MICROPHONE
Ainissa Ramirez (NASW Member), Setor Fiadzigbey, Illustrator
Series: The Black Innovators
MIT Kids Press/Candlewick, Oct 21, 2025, $18.99
ISBN-13: 978-1536225280
For readers aged 5 to 9

Ramirez reports:

When I was a little girl, I received a few issues of comic books from the Golden Legacy series. Each featured African American icons such as Martin Luther King and Alexander Pushkin. I enjoyed the issues on Black inventors the most, because they helped me see my reflection in the sciences, nurturing my dream of becoming a scientist.

I eventually became a materials scientist. Decades later, I wanted to give my young nephew a children’s picture book about Black inventors, but I couldn’t find many books on this topic. This experience inspired me to create my own series of children’s picture books. My first book Spark tells the story of Jim West, the co-creator of the microphone. Others in this Black Innovator series will include North, South, East, and Gladys West, which describes the Black woman mathematician who contributed to GPS. The Man Behind the Mask will tell the story of Garrett Morgan, the creator of an early gas mask. These children’s books are part of my effort to highlight other diverse and overlooked contributors to society, much as the Golden Legacy comic books did for me.

The MIT Press, the publisher of my book The Alchemy of Us, had just formed a new children’s imprint called MIT Kids Press in partnership with Candlewick. It was the perfect home for my new work. My wonderful agent Deborah Schneider ushered my manuscript through the acquisition process.

I suggest authors seeking to write children’s books read lots of children’s picture books. I also recommend that they join the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), as an introduction to this brave new world. Lastly, I recommend joining a critique group. Working with other children’s book writers will not only make your work better, it also will keep you motivated.

I have come to love writing children’s picture books. This beautiful genre mixes science with storytelling. It also possesses the challenge of distilling science down so that the youngest minds will “get” it. For me, doing such work is my small way of making the world a better place.

Contact info:

• Ainissa Ramirez
  • Ramirez’ website: https://www.ainissaramirez.com/
  • Bluesky: @ainissaramirez
  • Instagram: ainissaramirez
  • Linked In: @ainissaramirez
• Book: Spark: Jim West’s Electrifying Adventures in Creating the Microphone
• Publicist: Sarah Howard Parker, sarah.howardparker@walkerbooksgroup.com
• Agent: Deborah Schneider, mail@gelfmanschneider.com

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Banner image adapted from original photo by Ainissa Ramirez.

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