London calling

I just reviewed Salvatore Rubbino’s nonfiction picture book A Walk in London (Candlewick, March) for the May/June 2011 issue of The Horn Book Magazine. A follow-up to A Walk in New York, Rubbino’s new book is equally engaging, informative, and beautifully illustrated—and had me longing for a plane ticket back to my beloved study-abroad city.

Needing a London fix, I picked up London: A 3D Keepsake Cityscape illustrated by Sarah McMenemy, also from Candlewick and due out in May. At roughly 4 inches by 4 inches with an accordion-fold format, this definitely isn't a tour book or map to use as reference while wandering Kensington or Westminster, but it makes a perfect souvenir or gift. Both sides of the accordion showcase twelve cut-paper, pop-out illustrations of London landmarks with general information about each. Two maps place the sites in geographical relation to one another. For London lovers like myself, these pop-outs of famous places like Westminster Abbey (where Prince William and Kate will be married on April 29th!) or The London Eye are a great way to reminisce.

I hope more Keepsake Cityscapes are in the works and can’t wait to see which city will be next: New York? Boston? Paris? Rome? Washington, D.C.? There's a world of possibilities.

—Cindy Ritter