The co-op bookstore for avid readers
Book Cover for: Prairie Boy: Frank Lloyd Wright Turns the Heartland Into a Home, Barb Rosenstock

Prairie Boy: Frank Lloyd Wright Turns the Heartland Into a Home

Barb Rosenstock

In this book about Frank Lloyd Wright for kids, young readers will learn all about America's first world-famous architect.

Frank Lloyd Wright loved the Wisconsin prairie where he was born. But as his family moved across the United States, young Frank found his own home in shapes: rectangles, triangles, half-moons, and circles. When he returned to his beloved prairie, Frank pursued a career in architecture, as he didn't think the Victorian-era homes found there fit the prairie landscape. Using his knowledge and love of shapes, Frank created houses more organic to the land. He redesigned the American home inside and out, developing a truly unique architecture style. Author Barb Rosenstock and artist Christopher Silas Neal explore the early life and creative genius of architect Frank Lloyd Wright, highlighting his passion, imagination, and ingenuity, in this STEAM nonfiction picture book.


Book Details

  • Publisher: Calkins Creek Books
  • Publish Date: Sep 10th, 2019
  • Pages: 32
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 9.70in - 11.70in - 0.50in - 1.15lb
  • EAN: 9781629794402
  • Recommended age: 07-10
  • Categories: Biography & Autobiography - HistoricalArchitectureHistory - United States - 19th Century

More books to explore

Book Cover for: Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal, Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
Book Cover for: A Green Place to Be: The Creation of Central Park, Ashley Yazdani
Book Cover for: Orphan Train Rider: One Boy's True Story, Andrea Warren
Book Cover for: Electric Ben: The Amazing Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, Robert Byrd
Book Cover for: A Home for Mr. Emerson, Barbara Kerley
Book Cover for: I Could Do That!: Esther Morris Gets Women the Vote, Linda Arms White
Book Cover for: The Secret World of Walter Anderson, Hester Bass
Book Cover for: Mackinac Bridge: The Story of the Five Mile Poem, Gloria Whelan
Book Cover for: They Were Strong and Good, Robert Lawson
Book Cover for: Journey to Goliad, Melodie A. Cuate
Book Cover for: Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People, S. D. Nelson
Book Cover for: Fly High!: The Story of Bessie Coleman, Louise Borden
Book Cover for: Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy, Doreen Rappaport
Book Cover for: Moving the Millers' Minnie Moore Mine Mansion: A True Story, Dave Eggers
Book Cover for: Love Twelve Miles Long, Glenda Armand

About the Author

Barb Rosenstock is the author of many picture book biographies, including Blue Grass Boy: The Story of Bill Monroe, Father of Bluegrass Music; Thomas Jefferson Builds a Library; Dorothea's Eyes; Ben Franklin's Big Splash; and The Streak: How Joe DiMaggio Became America's Hero. Her picture book on Vasily Kandinsky, The Noisy Paint Box, won the 2015 Caldecott Honor Medal.

Christopher Silas Neal is the author and illustrator of multiple picture books, including I Won't Eat That and Everyone. He is also the illustrator of Kate Messner's Over and Under the Pond, Over and Under the Snow, and Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt. Visit csneal.com.

More books by Barb Rosenstock

Book Cover for: Sea Without a Shore: Life in the Sargasso, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: The Great Lakes: Our Freshwater Treasure, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: American Spirits: The Famous Fox Sisters and the Mysterious Fad That Haunted a Nation, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky's Abstract Art, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: The Mystery of the Monarchs: How Kids, Teachers, and Butterfly Fans Helped Fred and Norah Urquhart Track the Great Monarch Migration, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: The Camping Trip That Changed America: Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, and Our National Parks, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Vincent Can't Sleep: Van Gogh Paints the Night Sky, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Thomas Jefferson Builds a Library, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Otis and Will Discover the Deep: The Record-Setting Dive of the Bathysphere, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Leave It to Abigail!: The Revolutionary Life of Abigail Adams, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Through the Window: Views of Marc Chagall's Life and Art, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Yogi: The Life, Loves, and Language of Baseball Legend Yogi Berra, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Ben Franklin's Big Splash: The Mostly True Story of His First Invention, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: The Secret Kingdom: NEK Chand, a Changing India, and a Hidden World of Art, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Dorothea's Eyes: Dorothea Lange Photographs the Truth, Barb Rosenstock
Book Cover for: Ben Franklin's Big Splash, Barb Rosenstock

Praise for this book

Junior Library Guild Selection
Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People
NSTA/CBC Best STEM Book

"An obsession with shapes serves as a leitmotif as Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) grows to be a master architect... Neal's stylized illustrations are geometrically anchored, with crisp lines and shapes that occasionally echo Wright's signature patterning, and the earnest, informative narrative centers the subject's relatable interests. Substantial supplemental materials include an author's note, sources, and multiple photos of his work." -Publishers Weekly

'This picture-book biography captures how Frank Lloyd Wright revolutionized the American home. Lyrical text recalls Wright's early passion for architecture and his desire to break away from the old European-style houses he felt didn't match the American landscape. Digitally enhanced mixed-media artwork not only reflects colors that match Wright's moods and physical locales, but also uses geometric shapes to embody his concepts. This look at Wright's creative process will inspire children to take notice of their surroundings." -Booklist

"In this picture book biography of architect Frank Lloyd Wright, Rosenstock emphasizes the development of Wright's unique architectural vision... instead of focusing on specific buildings Wright created, this book highlights the roots of his thinking... an excellent introduction to the ideas behind Wright's architecture." -School Library Journal

"This very early introduction to the pre-eminent architect starts with his childhood, rich with prairie influences and a fascination with shapes... a compact narrative... makes clear the impact one person's vision can have. Mixed-media and digital art combines childlike crayon-effectlines and textures with crisply stylized shapes; Neal stealthily builds up the pre-Wright landscape as cluttered with gingerbread houses, arrestingly interrupted with the bold horizontality of an early Wright building. This may help give weight to kids' early play or open up their considerations of their own landscapes..." -The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books