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Hill's dedication line in "Building Stories" reads: "To my daughter, Anna, who continues to show me how to see things differently." The book is available at www.amazon.com and in Barnes & Noble stores (Star Bright Books ©2011).
While Urban Animals teaches kids basic architectural terms by highlighting quirky details on city buildings, Building Stories presents the analogy that buildings are like books: they each have a story to tell. "It's a little bit more academic," Hill says. "The thing I like about Building Stories is it teaches kids about the history of buildings and how to look at historic photographs." It also encourages them to be more observant, she says, and to appreciate and feel proud of their neighborhood.
The book features a rich collection of photographs of landmark buildings throughout Manhattan, the Bronx, and Brooklyn, including the Eberhard Faber Pencil Company in Green Point, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Borden Milk Plant on Atlantic Avenue. The photos are accompanied by descriptions written in rhyming verse. The back of the book lists full "characters and plots" for each building, including construction dates, location, and key players like architects and the people who worked and/or lived there.
For more information on the book and author, visit www.isabelhill.com.
