Prairie Boy

July 8, 2019
An obsession with shapes serves as a leitmotif as Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959) grows to be a master architect. In Rosenstock’s telling, his aesthetic was rooted in a childhood love of his Wisconsin prairie home’s natural geometries (“oval milkweed seeds, six-sided honeycombs, and triangle-faced badgers”) and his fascination with blocks. Wright’s awareness of spatial forms leads to his feeling that “the old European-style houses didn’t fit America’s landscape,” so he strikes out on his own, designing radically different buildings. “In Frank’s houses, people stood on shapes, sat on shapes, slept on shapes. They looked through shapes, ate off shapes, played by shape-light.” 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, where, “like magic, he shook dozens of shapes from his shirtsleeves.” Ages 7–10.

August 1, 2019

Gr 2-5-In this picture book biography of architect Frank Lloyd Wright, Rosenstock emphasizes the development of Wright's unique architectural vision; he grew up to believe that houses should fit the landscapes surrounding them and the lifestyle of families living in them. He thought that houses should also include the basic shapes that he had grown to love as a young boy. Instead of focusing on specific buildings Wright created, this book highlights the roots of his thinking-how what he believed as a boy influenced what he did as a grown man. These ideas are reinforced by Neal's illustrations. The rolling, colorful prairie of Wisconsin that Wright loved is in contrast with the gray, rocky coast of New England where his family moved when he was nine. Neal also contrasts the old-style European houses being built on the prairie with Wright's newer vision of a prairie house that fit the landscape. Back matter deepens understanding of Wright's delight in shapes and natural landscapes, and includes photographs of the subject and some of his outstanding architecture. VERDICT An excellent introduction to the ideas behind Wright's architecture. Use with K.L. Going's The Shape of the World and Lynda Waggoner's Fallingwater to learn more about the man who has been called America's greatest architect.-Myra Zarnowski, City University of New York

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2019
An American master builder was inspired by basic geometry and the Midwestern prairie. In boyhood, Frank Lloyd Wright was entranced by the land around him. To help him cope with frequent family moves that take him far from his beloved Wisconsin home, Wright's mother gave him sets of wooden blocks; he loved the myriad ways he could arrange their shapes. Recognizing that the multicolored, European-style homes popular at the time didn't meld with the landscape's natural contours nor suit contemporary American lifestyles, the adult Wright envisioned "a new kind of house." He opened his own firm and, using the plains' own shapes and colors as templates, designed long, rectangular "Prairie Houses" that blended organically into their surroundings. The text is serviceable as it provides a simple blueprint of the life and career of this 20th-century visionary, but there is no glossary for the many architecture-related terms used. Wright quotes appear throughout. Readers will be interested in how Wright's fascination with shapes and nature informed his work and should be encouraged to create their own "building designs." Dynamic mixed-media illustrations are replete with shapes: Many pages emphasize verticals and horizontals; some feature "wood-grained" blocks; trees are drawn with rounded leaves and sticklike trunks. Characters default white. A spread in the backmatter includes photos of some of Wright's most famous structures. A competent introduction to a master whose ideas still influence today's buildings. (author's note, sources) (Picture book/biography. 7-10)

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August 1, 2019
Grades 2-5 While some architects are famous for skyscrapers or monuments, this picture-book biography captures how Frank Lloyd Wright revolutionized the American home. Beginning with the architect's childhood on the Wisconsin prairie, the author credits Wright's mother for giving him wooden blocks and fostering a lifelong appreciation of shapes. 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 fit Wright's moods and physical locales but also uses geometric shapes to embody his concepts. As Rosenstock concludes by describing Wright's Prairie-style houses and their relationship to shape and nature, Neal's illustrations provide apt representations. Although time periods are not always clear from the text, an author's note fills in details about the architect's life and career. Appended photographs of Wright and his best-known designs, including Fallingwater, Robie House, and the Guggenheim Museum, also offer context. This look at Wright's creative process will inspire children to take notice of their surroundings.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)