From the August 19, 2007 Pigeon Post essay of the same title.
Among these books, there are really three categories: books that tell you how to build something, books that are about building in general, and books that are stories in which building or making something is a central and pivotal event in the book.
This book list is divided into three sections:
(1) Picture Books
(2) Books for Independent Readers
(3) Books for Young Adults
The list begins below with Picture Books, but you can use one of the following links to skip directly to either of the other two sections.
Go to books for Independent Readers
Go to books for Young Adults
Picture Books
Full Steam Ahead: The Road to Build a Transcontinental Railroad by Rhoda Blumberg Out of Print
Round Buildings Square Buildings, & Buildings That Wiggle Like a Fish by Philip M. Isaacson
Independent Reader
Nature Got There First: Inventions Inspired By Nature by Phil Gates Out of Print
In Search of the Spirit: The Living National Treasures of Japan by Shiela Hamanaka Out of Print
Young Adult
Among these books, there are really three categories: books that tell you how to build something, books that are about building in general, and books that are stories in which building or making something is a central and pivotal event in the book.
This book list is divided into three sections:
(1) Picture Books
(2) Books for Independent Readers
(3) Books for Young Adults
The list begins below with Picture Books, but you can use one of the following links to skip directly to either of the other two sections.
Go to books for Independent Readers
Go to books for Young Adults
Picture Books
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To Fly: The Story of the Wright Brothers by Wendie C. Old and illustrated by Robert Parker |
Full Steam Ahead: The Road to Build a Transcontinental Railroad by Rhoda Blumberg Out of Print
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Machines at Work by Byron Barton |
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Mike Mulligan and His Steamshovel by Virginia Lee Burton |
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One Big Building: a Counting Book About Construction by Michael Dahl and illustrated by Todd Ouren |
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The Quilt Block History of Pioneer Days by Mary Cobb and illustrated by Jan Davey Ellis |
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Ten Mile Day by Mary Ann Fraser |
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Construction Zone by Tana Hoban |
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Sky Boys How They Built the Empire State Building by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by James E. Ransome |
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Construction Zone by Cheryl Willis Hudson and illustrtaed by Richard Sobol |
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Alphabet Under Construction by Denise Fleming |
Round Buildings Square Buildings, & Buildings That Wiggle Like a Fish by Philip M. Isaacson
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So You Want to Be An Inventor? by Judith St. George and illustrated by David Small |
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The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge by Hildegard Swift and illustrated by Lynd Ward |
Independent Reader
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Ballpark by Lynn Curlee |
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Brooklyn Bridge by Lynn Curlee |
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Capital by Lynn Curlee |
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Liberty by Lynn Curlee |
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Parthenon by Lynn Curlee |
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Seven Wonders of the Ancient World by Lynn Curlee |
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Skyscraper by Lynn Curlee |
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You Can Draw Anything by Kim Gamble |
Nature Got There First: Inventions Inspired By Nature by Phil Gates Out of Print
In Search of the Spirit: The Living National Treasures of Japan by Shiela Hamanaka Out of Print
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How a House is Built by Gail Gibbons |
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Building Big by David MacAulay |
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Castle by David MacAulay |
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Cathedral by David MacAulay |
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City by David MacAulay |
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Mill by David MacAulay |
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Mosque by David MacAulay |
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Pyramid by David MacAulay |
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Unbuilding by David Macaulay |
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Underground by David MacAulay |
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Empire State Building by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Alan Witschonke |
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Hoover Dam by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Alan Witschonke |
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Machu Picchu by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Amy Crehore |
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Brooklyn Bridge by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Alan Witschonke |
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The Great Pyramid by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Laura Lo Turco |
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The Great Wall by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Alan Witschonke |
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The Hoover Dam by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Alan Witschonke |
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The Panama Canal by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Fernando Rangel |
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The Parthenon by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Yuan Lee |
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The Roman Colosseum by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Michael Racz |
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Tikal by Elizabeth Mann and illustrated by Tom McNeely |
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Ben and Me by Robert Lawson |
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Why Buildings Fall Down by Matthys Levi and Mario Salvatori and illustrated by Kevin Woest |
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A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park |
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The Art of Construction by Mario Salvatori and illustrated by Saralinda Hooker |
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Why Buildings Stand Up by Mario Salvatori |
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Inventors and Inventions in Colonial America by Charlie Samuel |
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From Pictures to Words: A Book About Making a Book by Janet Stevens |
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Built to Last by George Sullivan |
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Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Catherine Thimmesh and illustrated by Melissa Sweet |
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A Subway for New York by David Weitzman |
Young Adult
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Rocket Boys by Homer H. Hickam |
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To Engineer is Human by Henry Petroski |
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The Pencil by Henry Petroski |
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The Evolution of Useful Things by Henry Petroski |
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Eureka! Great Inventions and How They Happened by Richard Platt |
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