What does it take to build a dream? Kelly Starling Lyons’ picture book biography Dream Builder: The Story of Architect Philip Freelon explores that question.

Lyons structures Dream Builder around the steps necessary to build a building. She explores Vision, Foundation, Frame, Form, and Dream. We see how each of these ideas led to Freelon becoming an architect. At the same time, we see how each of these ideas leads to the buildings he creates.

The story also explores Freelon’s learning disability. He had many strengths in school. But reading was difficult for him. I think kids with similar struggles will love this book.

I was also interested to learn about Freelon’s attitudes about what he was willing to design. The book explains that “He will not design prisons or casinos.”

Freelon himself wrote an afterword for the book just weeks before he passed away in 2019. And Lyons has an interesting author’s note about how she came to the project.

You can read about Kelly Starling Lyons here.

You can look at more of the illustrator’s art here.

Dream Builder: The Story of Architect Philip Freelon by Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Laura Freeman (Lee & Low: 2020).

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