Architecture for kids

Macaulay, David. Building Big. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000. Print.

Whenever I visited New York as a kid, I would try my hardest not to look up at the buildings. I didn't want to be mistaken for a tourist. As if stepping out of Grand Central Station on a Saturday afternoon wasn't a dead giveaway. It was really embarrassing to visit the city with my mom because she would unfold a map right in the middle of the sidewalk and ask street cops for directions!

Vila, Laura. Building Manhattan. New York: Viking, 2008. Print.

Now that I'm a middle-aged adult, I don't even attempt to look cool, and I know that I would never pass as a New Yorker. When I finally did live in New York, my friends would tease that I was "soooooo Connecticut."

Gerstein, Mordicai. The Man Who Walked between the Towers. Brookfield, Conn: Roaring Brook Press, 2003. Print.

A couple of years ago my mother and I spent a weekend together playing tourist in NYC, and it was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life. We even rode a double-decker bus and got a close up view of architecture that I'd never noticed before. (Did you know that in the old days, stores would dress up their 3rd floor windows to attract riders on the el?)

Fischer, Chuck. Christmas in New York: A Pop-Up Book. New York: Bulfinch Press, 2005. Print.

I wish I'd paid more attention to architecture when I was younger. Aside from learning about ionic, Doric, and Corinthian columns, it's a subject that usually isn't covered in school. (Or it's entirely possible that I daydreamed straight through that lesson.)

Here are some more great books about architecture for kids:

Anno, Mitsumasa. Anno's Spain. New York: Philomel Books, 2004. Print.

Simon, Seymour. Bridges. San Francisco: SeaStar Books, 2005. Print.

Macaulay, David. Cathedral: the Story of Its Construction. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1973. Print.

Levy, Janey. The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright: Understanding the Concepts of Parallel and Perpendicular. PowerMath. New York: PowerKids Press, 2005. Print.

Greenberg, Jan, and Sandra Jordan. Frank O. Gehry: Outside in. New York: DK Ink, 2000. Print.


Munro, Roxie. The Inside-Outside Book of New York City. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1985. Print.

Doherty, Craig A, and Katherine M. Doherty. The Sears Tower. Woodbridge, Conn: Blackbirch Press, 1995. Print.

Hopkinson, Deborah, and James Ransome. Sky Boys : How They Built the Empire State Building. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books, 2006. Print.

Tomorrow we kick off the Charles P. Ferro Foundation Presents: Live at the Sherman Library! An Interactive Fine Arts Series for Youth with a hands-on building workshop. Master architect Margi Nothard is going to to show samples of her work and lead children in an exploration of beauty and structure. The event will include hands-on art activities for children and their families.

New comedy from Vanessa Hollingshead

My friend Vanessa Hollingshead has a new comedy DVD called Because I'm a Lady. Here's a preview:


Here's an old post about Vanessa. We were roommates in Queens.

Yes, I still watch The Real World.

McGrath, Tom. MTV: The Making of a Revolution. Philadelphia: Running Press, 1996.

Yes, I'm 42 years old and I still watch MTV's The Real World. This documentary/sociology experiment started back in 1992 when 7 strangers were chosen to live together in an amazing Manhattan apartment for a few months and have their every move taped.

Johnson, Hillary, and Nancy Rommelmann. The Real Real World. New York, NY: MTV Books/Pocket Books/Melcher Media, 1995.

Each year the show takes place in a different city with different cast members. The Real World is often credited as being the first influential reality show on national television. In fact, it is even featured in the Paley Center for Media.

Maupin, Armistead. Michael Tolliver Lives. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers, 2007.

The San Francisco season was especially ground-breaking because one of the cast members, Pedro Zamora, had the AIDS virus. He passed away only a few months after the last episode was aired and his death made national news. As President Bill Clinton said, Pedro had become a part of all our families and that now none of us could say that we didn't know someone living with AIDS.

Winick, Judd. Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned. New York: Henry Holt, 2000.

To learn more about Pedro, I highly recommend Judd Winick's book Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned. One of my favorite authors, Armistead Maupin writes:

"Pedro and Me is as lovely and resonant a tribute as one friend could possibly pay another. Judd Winick takes us beyond all those tilty camera angles into the realest world of all: the hearts and minds of the people who actually lived this wrenching but triumphant story. I was utterly captivated."

I met Judd Winick a few years ago at an ALA conference, but I was too shy to say much. I did get him to sign my copy of his book, though.

ps. In my opinion, Honolulu, Las Vegas, and Denver were the worst seasons because the kids acted like drunken springbreakers throwing off their clothes and getting into bar room brawls. It was kind of like watching the Jerry Springer Show, only with better looking people.

pps. I think this year's Real World: Brooklyn is the best season since San Francisco. I actually cried when I watched last week's episode. To learn more about Real World: Brooklyn, visit MTV.com.