Concrete from the ground up by Larissa Theule, illustrated by Steve Light

 Steve Light's intricate black and white drawings follow this fascinating account of the history of concrete and its uses past and present.

Theule explains the composition of concrete and then explores its earliest uses, up to the extensive use the Romans made of it as a building material. She explains the science behind domes and arches, and Light helps the explanation along with illustrations of the buildings, under construction, cut away to show the inner construction, and adds humor with lively cartoons.

The story jumps ahead to the "first" civil engineer, John Smeaton, and the re-emergence of concrete as a building material, specifically to create a lighthouse. The story moves on to the discovery of reinforced concrete, concurrent with the use of steel. Concrete builds bridges, walls, and buildings and even "fun" creations like the architecture of the Sydney opera house and public art. The story ends with an encouragement to imagine what else could be made with concrete and a bibliography.

This is in-depth enough to make it too lengthy for a storytime choice, but it would work well with a class of grade-school children or as an introduction to a unit on architecture for middle school readers. It would be great to pair it with How was that built? to investigate some of the building substances in more detail.

Verdict: I'm always looking for unusual and new nonfiction and this covers a popular topic (building) in a unique and fresh way. Recommended.

ISBN: 9781536212501; Published July 2022 by Candlewick; Borrowed from another library in my consortium; Added to an order list