Curve & Flow
The Elegant Vision of L.A. Architect Paul R. Williams
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
Discover the remarkable story of an orphaned Black boy who grew up to become the groundbreaking architect to the stars, Paul R. Williams. A stunning nonfiction picture-book biography from the Caldecott Honor–winning author and NAACP Image Award–nominated artist.
As an orphaned Black boy growing up in America in the early 1900s, Paul R. Williams became obsessed by the concept of "home." He not only dreamed of building his own home, he turned his dreams into drawings. Defying the odds and breaking down the wall of racism, Williams was able to curve around the obstacles in his way to become a world-renowned architect. He designed homes for the biggest celebrities of the day, such as Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball, and created a number of buildings in Los Angeles that are now considered landmarks.
From Andrea J. Loney, the author of the Caldecott Honor Book Double Bass Blues, and award-winning artist Keith Mallett comes a remarkable story of fortitude, hope, and positivity.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Loney emphasizes perseverance in this detailed account of Paul R. Williams's (1894–1980) path to "Architect to the Stars." Williams began drawing buildings as a child, but while he could "see his future as clearly as a blueprint," others warned that finding success as a Black architect would be impossible. After crashing "right into the big stone wall of racism," Williams finds ways to "curve and flow" around it, winning contests, opening his own firm, and starting a bank for the Black community. Using historical language, Loney lays bare the injustice and prejudice Williams encounters in designing structures he's not allowed to enter as a patron, and erecting homes in neighborhoods he must leave before sundown. Mallett's painterly digital renderings have a soft-edged Hollywood glow as they depict Williams working toward his dream; when the subject joins a top architectural firm, he appears among rubble ("Take that, stone wall!"). An author's note, photos, sources, and timeline conclude. Ages 4–8.
