​Picture Book Bibliography

 Building and Engineering

Non-fiction
Build it! Structures, Systems and You. Adrienne Mason
   Explores the function of structures, the materials they're made of, how their parts are joined together and more.
 
Girls Think of Everything. Catherine Thimmesh (illustrated by Melissa Sweet)
   Stories of ingenious inventions by women.
 
Houses and Homes. Ann Morris.
   A photographic survey of housing around the world.
 
How a House is Built. Gail Gibbons.
   From architect’s plans to a family moving in, general house building information.
 
Let’s Try It Out With Towers and Bridges. Seymour Simon.
   Hands-on early learning activities.
 
The House That Max Built. Maxwell Newhouse.
   Takes readers through the major steps of the construction of a house, from the architect's drawings to the completed house.

Twenty-one Elephants and Still Standing.  April Jones Prince.
   How will people know that it’s safe to cross the newly constructed Brooklyn Bridge?
 
What it Feels Like to be a Building. Forrest Wilson.
   How different parts of a building, such as columns, walls, beams, buttresses, rods, and cables, function to support great weight and stress.
 
Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson's Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions. Chris Barton.
   A biography of Lonnie Johnson, inventor of the Super Soaker.
 
 
Fiction (and some facts)
Albert’s Alphabet.  Leslie Tryon.
   Resourceful Albert builds the alphabet for the school playground in just one day.
 
Alphabet Under Construction.  Denise Fleming.
   A mouse builds the alphabet with found objects.
 
Arches to Zigzags. Michael Crosbie (OP)
   Introduces both the alphabet and diverse architectural elements.
 
Architecture According to Pigeons.  Speck Lee Tailfeather.
   A pigeon’s view of the world’s great architecture and structures.
 
B Is for Bulldozer. June Sobel.
   A construction ABC featuring a special building project.
 
Block City.  Robert Louis Stevenson.
   A child builds a block city based on the Stevenson poem.
 
Builder Goose.  Boni Ashburn (OP)
   Mother Goose favorites with construction themes, it’s Construction Rhyme Time!
 
Building. Elisha Cooper (OP)
   All about what goes on at a construction site.
 
Building a House.  Byron Barton.
   Perfect for even the youngest readers.
           
Building Our House.  Jonathan Bean.
   A family builds their own house, from empty lot to finished home.
 
Changes, Changes. Pat Hutchins.
   A house made of blocks is transformed into several other structures.
 
Dreaming Up: A Celebration of Building. Christy Hale.      
   Shows how children’s constructions are reflected in the world’s architecture.
 
Homes. Fiona MacDonald (OP)
   Features different kinds of homes from different world cultures.
 
A House Is a House for Me. Mary Ann Hoberman.
   Where does everyone and every thing live?
 
If I Built a House.  Chris Van Dusen.
   Children will want to plan and build their own house after talking about this book.
 
Iggy Peck, Architect.  Andrea Beaty.
   Iggy has one passion, building.
 
Look at The Building! Scot Ritchie.
   A first book of structure introduces children to basic construction concepts.
 
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. Virginia Lee Burton.
   Mike and steam shovel Mary Anne dig the cellar for the new town hall.
 
Not a Box. Antoinette Portis.
   What can you do with just a box?
 
Old MacDonald Had a Woodshop. Lisa Shulman.
   Together with the other farm animals, Old MacDonald is building a surprise for the babies on the farm. ​
 
Roberto The Insect Architect.  Nina Laden.
   Termite Roberto has always wanted to be an architect, much to his family’s dismay.
 
Rosie Revere, Engineer.  Andrea Beaty.
   Rosie invents gizmos and gadgets and dreams of becoming an engineer.
 
Roxaboxen.  Alice McLerren.
   A group of children build an imaginary town with found objects.
 
Three Little Javelinas.  Susan Lowell.
   A retelling of the 3 Little Pigs set in the American Southwest with javelins and a coyote.
 
Three Little Pigs.  Paul Galdone
   …and versions by James Marshall, David Wiesner, Jon Sciezska
 
Up! Up! Up! Skyscraper.  Anastasia Suen.
   The step-by-step construction of a skyscraper explained with illustrations, rhymes and sidebars.         
                                               
Who Made This Cake?  Chihiro Nakagawa.
   Little people use big machines to make a giant birthday cake.
 
 
Books for information, images and discussions
Building Big. David Macaulay.
   A classic text.
 
Story of Buildings.  Patrick Dillon.
   Clear explanations of building concepts with detailed, labeled drawings.
 
Skyscrapers: A History of the World's Most Extraordinary Buildings. Judith Dupre.         
   A “super-tall book” with drawings and photographs and easy to share information.
 
Women of Science.  Rachel Ignotofsky.
   Stories of 50 fearless women who changed the world. 



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