Customer Reviews

Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out

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This book is a contemplation of many stories about the White House. Some are old, most are written by famous children's authors of the day. Great book illustrators are included too! (I want a poster of Eric Carle's contribution.) Every single entry is superlative and of great interest. I was absorbed from beginning to end. I am a teacher and my only problem will be how to share this book with my students. I will look for openings in the curriculum to share many of the stories and hope some of them will be interested in reading it themselves. The book is wonderful.

As a journalist who specializes in covering spirituality in daily life, I find myself drawn toward projects conceived by Candlewick Press. I still think their "A Visitor for Bear" is one of the best books I've ever read about the spiritual theme of hospitality.

Well, "Our White House" is a colossal project compared with "Bear" and I was pleased after reading all of its more than 200 pages to conclude that even in large-scale, long-form projects, the Candlewick team hasn't lost their impish sense of storytelling.

I say that because this is a weighty project. More than 100 top names in American history, arts and literature contributed to this coffee-table book for families. Pulitzer Prize winner David McCullough is here along with Jimmy Carter, Charles Dickens and Walt Whitman. These are heavy names. This is a big book. It could have turned out as dull as one of those bronze statues in D.C. that people barely notice anymore.

Here's what I like about the book and why I think it's timely with our American role in the world called into question in so many ways: This book dares to have fun with America's enduring capacity for creativity. And that is an important spiritual lesson right now.

Did you know that Thomas Jefferson defied naysayers in personally helping to popularize the tomato? He did. He cultivated them and ate them both fresh and cooked. Today, who could imagine American cuisine without tomatoes?

Did you know that the Lebanese-American journalist Helen Thomas opened doors at the White House to female journalists? She did. And she did it by first cultivating coverage of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, a major barrier breaker herself.

Did you know it was a White House Executive Order in 1903 that kick started the national preservation of our wilderness and wildlife? It was. Teddy Roosevelt was behind it and, more than likely, his family's love of wildlife -- including a crazy array of pets in the White House -- played a role in saving some of our most precious natural areas.

Families will have a lot of fun sharing individual two- and three-page stories from the book. And it's not only a collection of stories. There are poems here, too, and letters. Some of the lavish illustrations are worthy a good bedtime story by themselves.

Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out This book is the natural outcome of all those speeches and interviews David McCullough has given around the country claiming again and again, "our children don't know enough about history."
And this book couldn't come at a better time, on the heels of the spectacular John Adams HBO miniseries. This book was written for young people to help them fall in love with history, the way the 108 contributors to this marvelous book clearly already have.
This book has all the reliable gateways to keep a kid interested, great illustrations, funny stories and personal notes the people that lived in the White House.
Really well done. I'm so glad!!

I had never heard of this book before, but I ran across it in a 'going out of business' sale at Borders, and I got it at half price. What a find. I collect children's illustrated
books and while generally the books I buy are for a younger set, I found so many of my favorite authors and particularly illustrators here that I couldn't resist. The fact that
history intrigues me is a plus, but not the main reason why I bought the book. Where else would I be able to find Walter Dean Myers, S. D. Schindler, Brian Selznik, Robert Byrd, the Dillons,
Pinkney, Sis, Ed Young, Stephane Jorisch (how did this Belgian/Canadian get into this ever so American book), David Small, Eric Carle - and so many others - all delivering their work in one book?


The paperback version, which I have, is updated from the original 2008 hardback version and is current through Obama. Nikki Grimes' "Inaugural Morning" which celebrates the historic event took my breath away.

Those who are interested in the economic situation during FDR's time might want to look at the illustrative four page explanation by Matt Phelan called "Hoover's One Term"

Gold Star Award Winner!

On March 14, 1792, building commissioners in charge of the newly planned capitol city of the infant United States government issued a call for designs on a presidential mansion. The person who submitted the winning design would win five hundred dollars or a medal of the same value for their plans.

Over the next few years, with the combined efforts of world renowned builders, immigrant workers, and even slaves, the most famous house in the country rose from the ground, and admitted its first official residents--John and Abigail Adams--in the year 1800.

Today, that same house serves as much more than just the living quarters of the presidential family. Historic events that have shaped the course of the United States have taken place within its walls. On the flipside, some of the most insignificant things that have happened there have kept not only the nation, but the entire world, intrigued for generations.

From devastating fires to the antics of the president's children, from whacky pets to the ghosts of former residents, from the press corps to the secret service, and from weddings to some really tough decisions...these are only a few small slices of what this house has seen.

To the hundreds of beings who stay, visit, and work in this house every day, and to the millions of people affected by what happens in it, the White House serves as a symbol of hope, peace, and togetherness, making it not just a presidential house, but a house that belongs to all.

This impressive collection of stories, anecdotes, essays, and illustrations has been assembled by the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance to offer a wide range of insight into how this historic house has shaped and changed so many lives. They've also put together a comprehensive website [...] which expands on the information and stories featured in the book. You can even download a Barack Obama sticker to add to the line of presidents found in the book's timetable.

Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose

Delivery was fast and product condition was as described. The packaging was not the best and arrived with some tears in the envelope. Product was still in great shape, though.

Not many houses are versatile enough to accommodate over 200 years of history, and still manage to be the symbol that the White House is for the nation of people who rely upon it.

Why the President and his/her family must live there as well as work there has always been somewhat of a mystery though. It may have been necessary when first built and a young nation doesn't have much money to work with. But as America progressed, the tradition of power of the place rather than the power of the person with the title of President seems to have become more important. For habitation purposes and for security and efficiency purposes, it seems more practical that a new Presidential residence be built, and allow the President to work there, and not have to live there also, allowing the White House to become the Museum it is, and that people love to visit - in every nook and cranny.

Americans don't need to duplicate monarchies to sustain their democracy, nor do they need to give up the formality of pomp and ceremony that accompanies a head of state - since they can have both comfort and circumstance - without sacrifice. The White House should be turned over to the White House Historical Association, and allow this generation to build their own legacy to the nation by bringing the Presidency into the egalitarianism of the 21st Century.

It is a Christmas Gift, so I do not know how to respond until the recipient of the gift gives me feedback.