National Monuments of the USA

I’ve admired Chris Turnham’s work for years; his prints hang in several rooms of my home, and seeing his art across a hundred pages is a joy. This book isn’t just beautifully illustrated, it’s inclusive and thoughtful: exactly the kind of world I want my children to grow up in. From a UK perspective, I loved how it goes beyond the usual landmarks to show sides of America we rarely see. That breadth makes it richer, more surprising, and more engaging. Some readers may prefer only the “famous” monuments, but for us, the value is in its variety and inclusivity. The stories here show how many different people have helped shape the world, and this book captures that with warmth and respect. Whether you’re already a fan of Turnham’s art and Cameron Walker’s writing, or simply want a family book that inspires curiosity about the wider world, this is a treasure. We love it in our home.

This book on National Monuments is excellent! My 12 year old devoured it and kept sharing the facts he learned as he was reading. I was impressed by the creative writing that draws you in to each description and inspires you to visit each monument in person. I appreciate how the book is organized by region with illustrated maps at the beginning of each section. The illustrations are beautiful throughout the book as well. I highly recommend this book as well as the National Parks of the USA book by the same illustrator. As a former teacher, I think that both of these books should be in every 4th grade classroom to encourage and inspire the Every Kid in a Park program that offers FREE entrance to all National Parks and Monuments in the US for 4th graders AND their families. Many 4th grade families don’t know about this amazing opportunity. All that’s needed is to sign up online and have the pass at the park entrance and the entire family gets in free (everykidoutdoors.gov).

The first monument the book covered was the Statue of Liberty. The second was the Stonewall LGBTQ monument. We loved the illustrations in our National Parks book by the same illustrator (which I highly recommend), and thought this would be a win, but unfortunately it’s a return. When there’s so much rich history to our country (albeit an imperfect one), I find it rather off-putting to highlight this monument in a children’s book. And yes, putting it second to the Statue of Liberty means something. Yep, I see that. Even Civil Right’s monuments, Fort McHenry, the fort that overlooked a famous battle in the Revolutionary War (in which our National anthem was written), and our National Mall and Memorial Parks come second to this very particularly aimed featured monument. The sexual identities creating the acronym LGBTQ are listed along with featuring a snippet about a sculpture called Gay Liberation. The illustrations include a drag queen, pride parades, gay men, and an explanation of the rainbow/trans/poc flag. Mt. Rushmore? Nope. Drag queen? Yes. Beautifully illustrated agenda.

fun to put on van that we have ventured too!

Nice book and illustrated well for a young audience. Book is pretty big which is a little awkward.