Hundreds of years ago the Indians discovered oil. They used it to waterproof their canoes and to paint their faces. Later people learned to use oil in lamps and stoves. Today oil heats our houses and fuels our cars and planes and ships. It is a vital part in the manufacture of many things we use every day—plastics and cloth and paint and steel.

We all know how important oil is in our lives, but what is oil? Where does it come from?

Roma Gans explains, simply and clearly, how the oil we use today was formed millions of years ago, how it is found and pumped from the earth to be refined into hundreds of modern products. Giulio Maestro's lively illustrations complete this timely account of a true buried treasure.

From the dust jacket