AASL December Column, Part II
Column by Barbara Opar, Librarian for Architecture, Syracuse University Libraries
Through the Eyes of a Child
King+King Architecture Library display, December 2024
Sharing with you part 2 of this month鈥檚 AASL Column which is devoted to the theme of architecture books鈥攖o give, to receive and hopefully to enjoy for a long time to come. When I prepared part 1 of the column, I was remiss in considering an important audience鈥攃hildren. Yes, adult architects and educators need and love books. 聽It has been said: 鈥淏ooks entertain us, expand us, spark the imagination, and expose us to new worlds.聽 A child can find themselves鈥攑resent and future鈥攁mongst the pages of a great story.聽 Looking out from there, anything seems possible.鈥� ()
Let鈥檚 look at some of the possibilities. One of the best-known and admired writers of children鈥檚 books is David Macaulay. A graduate of RISD, Macaulay鈥檚 books all have a touch of whimsy. His books are so well-designed and researched that many of them have been used in adult art and architectural history courses. Consider: Mosque. (New York, NY: Clarion Books, 2003.)
While Macaulay鈥檚 works focus on accuracy with respect to the depiction of building details, other architects have either retold traditional tales or provided noteworthy illustrations.
In the 1990s, Rizzoli Classics included: 聽Stern, Robert A.M. The House That Bob Built. New York, NY: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc, 1991.
The possibilities are endless. Notable examples include: Koponen, Libby. The House that Baba Built: An Artist鈥檚 Childhood in China. Boston, MA : Little, Brown, and Company, 2011.
Parra, John. Growing an Artist: The Story of a Landscaper and His Son. New York, NY : Simon & Schuster Children鈥檚 Publishing Division, 2022.
Swanson, Susan Marie. The House in the Night. Boston, MA : Houghton Mifflin Company, 2008.
A research guide from my library highlights more such imaginative titles:
Check out your public library for curated collections of children鈥檚 books sure to inspire. Remember though, academic libraries often collect noteworthy titles, especially or . Buy or borrow, but look to books now and into the future to instill a sense of wonder in the children around you.