Text Courtesy of The Canadian Children?s Book Centre.

Elsa Lam is the editor of Canadian Architect magazine, and formally trained in architectural design and architectural history. She also has a pre-schooler who loves books. We asked her for her recommendations of books about architecture appropriate for kids aged 2-4. Here are her top picks.

The House Next Door

Written by Claudine Crangle

Groundwood Books, 2021
A small house is the protagonist of this story?first standing alone in a field, and later joined by neighbouring houses which he at first shies away from, then cautiously befriends. Crangle?s delightful papercraft illustrations invite young readers to try their own hand at crafting houses from cardboard and fabric scraps.
Over the Shop
Written by JonArno Lawson

Illustrated by Qin Leng,

Candlewick Press, 2021
This wordless tale is a heartwarming story of intergenerational cooperation: a young couple moves into the apartment above a general store, and work with the store owner and their granddaughter to clean and renovate. The book closes with the group?which grows to include a neighbour and a stray cat?enjoying an evening celebration on the balcony overtop the storefront.
The Rock From the Sky

Written and illustrated by Jon Klassen

Candlewick Press, 2021
I love kid?s books that make clever use of the space of each page, turning the book itself into a kind of architectural project. Writer and illustrator Jon Klassen has a deft ability to do this in eac...