home sweet neighborhood: transforming cities one block at a time

* Shortlisted for the Red Cedar Children’s Book Award 2021 and the Rocky Mountain Book Award 2021; a Green Earth Book Award 2020 Honor Book; a Junior Library Guild selection (2019); and selected for Canadian Children’s Book Centre’s Best Books for Kids and Teens 2019

Picture a busy avenue. Now plant trees along the boulevard, paint a mural by the empty lot, and add a community garden. Set up benches along the sidewalks and make space for kids’ chalk drawings, and you’ve set the scene for a thriving community. Placemaking—personalizing public and semi-private spaces like front yards—is a growing trend in cities and suburbs around the world, drawing people out of their homes and into conversation with one another.

Kids are natural placemakers, building tree forts, drawing on sidewalks and setting up lemonade stands, but people of all ages can enjoy creative placemaking activities. From Dutch families who drag couches and tables onto sidewalks for outdoor suppers to Canadians who build little lending libraries to share books with neighbors, people can do things that make life more fun and strengthen neighborhoods. Home Sweet Neighborhood combines upbeat text, fun facts and colorful photos to intrigue and inspire readers.

Reviews

“Home Sweet Neighborhood makes me so happy! Michelle Mulder’s delightful book is proof that, by working and playing together, all of us have the power to create better communities.”

- Charles Montgomery, Author of Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design

“An upbeat view of innovations in modern living.”

- KIrkus Review

“Lively idea. An intriguing book on a good topic.”

- Booklist

“A vibrant introduction to community building through the practice of placemaking and how much one person can accomplish through small activities. Readers will be inspired by the variety of ideas and the stories of success to start placemaking in their own neighborhood. Highly Recommended.”

- CM: Canadian Review of Materials