Adored this book on Gaudí and loved sharing it with my son who was captivated by the beautiful artwork. I visited Barcelona in 2015 and experienced Park Güell and La Sagrada Familia in person. It was majestic and this book captured the architecture and artwork perfectly. We also loved learning about the backstory on Gaudí. “Man does not create…. He discovers.” Looking forward to buying this book when it hits the shelves!

This book shows the life of Antoni Gaudi. I learned so much, and the illustrations were so cool! Had a cubist, Picasso vibe to them! This book was bright and interesting- makes me want to visit Spain asap!!

Gaudi is the story of Antoni Gaudi, a spanish architect and artist well known for this UNESCO world heritage site buildings in Barcelona. The beautiful, somewhat abstract, very unique illustrations are beautiful and very inviting. This book, and the story within it, are both the true definition of STEAM, Science/Math meet Art. As a grade 3 teacher, I would definitely consider purchasing a copy of this book for my classroom library. The text is probably too difficult for most early years students to read themselves, but I could see reading this story to my class or using it with upper elementary students. I think that the illustrations are the perfect for inspiring children to create their own art. I would definitely recommend this book to teachers and families of children in the 5-12 age range. The number of connections to curricular content are infinite and the story itself is inspirational. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Antoni Gaudi was a disabled man who changed the face of architecture and art in Barcelona- mostly he is known for his mosaics and unique building structures.

I had never heard of Antoni Gaudí till I picked up this book.

It was interesting to learn about this guy. The art style was amazing and colorful, definitely something that would draw in children.

I loved this one! Read it with my toddler, but as someone who did not know very much about Gaudí’s early life, it was educational for me as well. The bright and colourful illustrations were beautiful and complementary to his style, enriching the reading experience. Would love to get a copy of this to keep.

I knew of Gaudi, of course. I've dreamed of visiting Barcelona and seeing La Sagrada Familia. But as soon as I started this picture book biography, I realized how little I knew of the man. Katz did an amazing job of distilling his life in a way to draw in young readers, and Schwalbe's artwork captures the spirit of Gaudi's work. A short, one page note at the end gives a few more facts. One small critique: I do wish the book had listed some sources or suggestions for kids who want to learn more. This delightful book is highly recommended for young readers.

Gaudi was such a fascinating, unique, and inventive artist. This book does justice to those qualities by conveying his willingness to experiment in achieving that uniqueness. The details of his early, impressionable youth through the adjustment to his early illness set the tone for the development of his beautiful artwork. However, I do wish the author had provided more of his later life which would have made the book even more valuable.
Having visited Gaudi's Barcelona, the illustrations in the book did show just how vivid, flamboyant and special they were. He was a genius and readers of this book will see just that.

Beautiful drawings and insight on a Gaudi - while his architecture is well known, I did not know much about his life or his inspiration. The story takes you through his childhood, where he always felt out of place, through nature and how it later inspired him on to University and the start of his career in Barcelona. Providing detailed descriptions about how Gaudi's work was unique, it ends with the unfinished Sagrada Familia, which is still being worked on to this day. Children will be attracted to the bright, vivid and imaginative drawings. But the words themselves do not flow, making it a little stilted. Story accompanied with a short biography as well as a list of architecture Gaudi completed.

What Worked:
This book provides the opportunity to explore an artist that is frequently under appreciated by the American Culture.
This book did a good job of introducing the "genius" behind the art and explaining how the artists found his motivations.

What didn't work:
The illustrations attempted to correlate the story lines (and at times did) as well as nod to Gaudi's style. Some of the illustrations required increased insight into the architecture and buildings that he created to understand their correlation to the story line.

I was provided an ARC by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review- Thank you!

I didn't know Gaudi before picking up this book. All I know about him at the moment is what the book taught me. In my opinion, the book has fulfilled its purpose by piquing my interest in Gaudi's creations, his personality and life styles. Though the story could have used a little bit more information, it can be great resource to provide primary ideas to someone or young readers about what made Gaudi special. The writing is great; the illustrations are even better: bright, colorful and eye catching. I would personally recommend it. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publishers for proving me with the e-copy.

We didn’t know a lot about Gaudi going into this, but we enjoyed the book and the illustrations so much we went and researched a bit more. Seriously lovely illustrations and very informative. Thanks NetGalley!

Thank you to NetGalley and North South Books Inc. for the opportunity to read and review an e-ARC of this book. I was drawn to the cover illustration and am already a fan of Gaudi, and luckily have had the opportunity to see many of his creations in Barcelona firsthand. The book's illustrations do bring the magic of his style to the page, although I wouldn't say they completely capture his aesthetic. I find the text to be slightly confusing, and I'm not sure if it's an audience mismatch or a tone being off. The book attempts to be mostly chronological, going from Gaudi's early childhood (young Antoni) to his adult creative years. I think this is one of the cases where readers would want to already be familiar with the subject's work to find out who he was as a child and how he arrived there, otherwise it's not as impactful? The text both oversimplifies the story (to speed between his childhood and architecture projects) and complicates it with details (like once being sick enough to make his will -- something kids aren't going to get?), but not the kind that make the subject jump off the page as a real person. I think I would rate at 2.5 stars for the mean time, as it's a compelling story that's not quite for me with beautiful artwork in celebration of an important figure.

I loved the illustrations in this book. However, where it fell short for me was in the tone and language used throughout. There was a mismatch between the age group this book was meant to target and the tone and language used throughout.
The book lightly touches on Gaudi's illness and childhood, as well as gives an overview of his training, works and inspiration. It doesn't stay on one topic for long, and therefore to me, the themes and level of detail make it a book for those between the ages of 6 to 8. However, at times the author uses drier language and longer sentences (eg. "he ended up so over-budget", rather than more direct, active voice) that to me don't match the pacing and tone required to be engaging for younger children. It reads drier than it should,

That being said, the illustrations capture the magic of the architect, and it's a fun book that tells children it's okay to be different, to dream, and to love their imperfections.

Thanks to North South Books Inc and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is a wonderful, attractive, stunningly illustrated look at Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí. Each page is chock-full of useful facts in regards to Gaudí's life, art, designs, and family. This book would make a great addition to an elementary school library's non-fiction section.

It is important to note that I believe this lovely picture book's best use is not for storytime with a group of preschoolers. It's wordy and biographical, as you would hope to find when looking up information on an individual, This book's format and the lack of fantastical storyline (although Gaudí was a fantastical person) would be suited best in the children's research space, in instances when teaching about biographies, a lesson on architecture, an overview of his artworks and architecture, etc.

Thank you NetGalley for the e-book copy in exchange for a review.
I think this book is a good little biography of Gaudi. I'm not sure if it makes an engaging story a kid will want to come back to, but it's a good text to explain the architect's work and life to a young audience. The pages and colors are fun for sure. The only problem I found is that while having a unique and good representative style, the illustrations don't capture the magic I felt visiting the mentioned buildings.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley

Gaudi - Architect of Imagination by Susan B. Katz is an amazing children's picture book that teaches children about the real-life person of Antoni Gaudi. Antoni was the son of a blacksmith who became a world-famous architect. According to the description, "many considered his unusual ideas eccentric, sometimes even crazy. But Gaudí was simply ahead of his time."

Overall, Gaudi - Architect of Imagination is an incredible children's picture book that I can see winning many awards when it comes out in June. One highlight of this book is the amazing art. You can get a glimpse of it on the cover, but the inside is absolutely stunning. I don't even know how to describe it. It seems part Cubist, part Picasso, very abstract. If you're intrigued by the description, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in June!

What a colorful, fanciful introduction to this gifted artist! This book belongs on early childhood classroom shelves right next to art books that show photographs of Gaudi's work, and around the corner from the modeling clay and 3d collage materials.

This book whet my appetite for learning more about Gaudi's life.
Thanks to North South Books and NetGalley for a free e-copy for review.

A beautiful introduction for children to Antoni Gaudi's architecture. This would be especially wonderful for children interested in art and architecture. I loved learning about Gaudi's life and what inspired his work. Perfect for children who love the Little People, Big Dreams series.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sorry, but no. This book wants to be a primary school biography of the wonderful architect and park planner Antoni Gaudi, but let's face it – how many kids could enthuse about either of those careers, especially when they have no idea what Gaudi did and what made him special? These pages really are not the way to show that, either – the artwork was a real turn-off for me, and all that seems to single Gaudi out were the fact that he liked seeing quirky curvy things in nature, and didn't attend school through childhood illness. Yes, if a teacher could present the story backwards – starting with the Casas and *that* basilica, explaining how marvellous they are – we'd be interested in the background detail. But I knew from the off that the younger me would barely have been interested enough to get as far as any finished Gaudi product, in even this short read. One and a half stars.

“Man does not create, he discovers.”

An artist ahead of his time, Antoni Gaudi lived and created to show that dreams do change the world.

Unable to go to school because of a health challenge, Guadi took solace and learned lessons from nature. When his health improved, he was able to go to university and pursue his dream of architecture and design, focused on ceramic tile and stone. With nature as his teacher, he honed his innovative and flamboyant style and produced colourful mosaics. Upon graduation, his professors admitted, “I don’t know if we’re graduating a genius or a fool.” It seems despite his certification, he was still misunderstood.

Thankfully, he didn’t give up and a chance meeting with Count Escubl Guell was a turning point in his life. Guell understood Gaudi’s innate passion and unique vision and fostered Gaudi’s dreams to transform Barcelona. His most famous landmark, still incomplete although work is ongoing, was inspired after a long illness and near-death experience. The iconic Sagrada Familia church showcases Gaudi’s style and stands as an homage to this creative artist, an architect of imagination.

Susan Katz’s beautifully written book honours the memory and masterpieces of Antoni Gaudi. It’s easy to understand, has just the right amount of information on each page, and holds the attention of even the smallest children. Her theme of continuing to fuel one’s dreams despite criticism and misunderstanding is clear. Children need to read that it’s ok to be different and that it’s important to follow one’s passions, regardless of what others think. Hopefully children will appreciate the importance of imagination.

Linda Schwalbe’s vibrant and dazzling illustrations reflect Gaudi’s daring and innovative style. They invite little eyes to wander the page and soak up creativity and inspiration.

I was gifted this advance copy by Susan Katz, North South Books Inc and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.