There is at least one (probably many) article/entry in this book that will grab every reader and affect them deeply.

Our White House covers the history of the White House chronologically, from John Adams (the first president to reside there) down through George and Laura Bush. Some of you may remember that Laura Bush is a children’s librarian. The unique character of this book is that while many of the articles are first-person eyewitness accounts, an equal number have been contributed by a veritable who’s who of outstanding, award-winning children’s book authors and illustrators.

There are illustrations by Bagram Ibatoulline, Brian Selznick, Peter Sis, and Seven Kellogg among others. Even if you do not recognize those names, trust me, they’re some of the best children’s illustrators of the last thirty years.

The narratives include:

• Slaves helped Build the White House by Walter Dean Myers (two Newbery Honor books)
• Thomas Jefferson by Milton Meltzer (numerous biographies)
• From the Walls of the White House by Kathleen Krull (Lives of the Musicians, Lives of the Artists)
• High Spirits in the Lincoln White House by Russell Freedman (Lincoln: A Photobiography)
• The Eyes and Ears of the Public by Katherine Paterson (Bridge to Terabithia)
• Storming Down the Stairs by Albert Marrin (Virginia’s General)
• Executive Order to Nature by Jean Craighead George (Julie of the Wolves)
• Hands by Patricia McLachlan (author of Sarah, Plain & Tall)
• The White House, the Moon, and a Coal Miner’s Son by Homer Hickam (author of October Sky)

There are also numerous historical speeches and letters (by presidents and others)

• Charles Dickens 1842 American Notes
• Eisenhower’s Farewell Address to the Nation – 1961
• My Room by Linda Johnson Robb
• Robert F. Kennedy’s remarks on the Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
  
• Nixon’s Final remarks to the White House Staff
  
• Ronald Reagan’s Farewell Address to the Nation – 1989
• Letter to George, Jeb, Neil, Marvin and Doro from George H.W. Bush – 1990

The artwork is lush, the format is large and colorful. The variety is intriguing and impressive.

Our White House is a hardback, 9.5″ x11″, 256 pages available directly from Greenleaf Press for $29.99

– Rob Shearer, Publisher
Greenleaf Press

Here’s the publisher’s blurb:

“Conceived and co-created by the National Children’s Book and Literary Alliance, this incomparable collection of essays, personal accounts, historical fiction, and poetry melds with an equally stunning array of original art to offer a multifaceted look at America’s history through the prism of the White House. Starting with a 1792 call for designers to plan a presidential mansion and continuing through the present day, OUR WHITE HOUSE takes in everything from the amusing antics of presidents’ children and pets to the drama of the White House ablaze and the specter of war; from the role of immigrants, African Americans, and Native Americans to the thoughts and actions of many presidents themselves. These highly engaging writings and illustrations, expressing varied viewpoints and interwoven with key historical events, are a vital resource for family sharing and classroom use — and a stirring reminder that the story of the White House is the story of every American. More than one hundred leading authors and illustrators donate their talents in a creative tour de force that is making history.”