Chicago author Barb Rosenstock writes award-winning books for children of all ages. Her young-adult nonfiction book “American Spirits: The Famous Fox Sisters and the Mysterious Fad that Haunted a Nation” was a 2026 YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award finalist, and her nonfiction picture books are widely acclaimed.
- Released this year, Rosenstock’s picture-book biography “Houdini’s Library: How Books Created the World’s Greatest Magician” (2026, Alfred A. Knopf, illustrated by Mar Delmar, ages 4-9) dives deep into Harry Houdini’s story.
We meet Erik Weisz, the fourth son of a rabbi in Hungary, growing up surrounded by books, “thick and thin, small and tall, older and newer.” Then we follow his family to America. They’re hoping for greater opportunity but instead struggle with poverty. Erik, inspired by reading a 10-cent book by the father of modern magic, Jean Robert-Houdin, finds his passion.
The unique illustrations, made with miniature paper models, give us a 3-D feel as we see Erik transform into Houdini, collecting books on magic, practicing his tricks, and meeting his assistant and future wife, Bess. As he charms crowds throughout Europe and the U.S., Houdini continues to buy books, “thick and thin, small and tall, older and newer.”
In the end, as we see Houdini as the world’s most renowned escape artist, we also know him as an avid reader. The story concludes: “Books are Harry’s greatest escape. They spark imagination. They bring the past to life. They make home feel like home.” The author’s and illustrator’s notes complete this engaging, well-researched book.
- In “The Great Lakes: Our Freshwater Treasure” (2024, Alfred A. Knopf, illustrated by Jamey Christoph, ages 4-9), Rosenstock directly addresses readers in the text, telling them to find the Great Lakes on a map and asking, “How did they get there?”
She takes us back about 2 million years ago when that area of the Earth was very cold. “If you were a snowflake back then, you were in luck! You didn’t melt,” she writes. From snowflakes to a “super tall” glacier to the Great Lakes, we ride through time and then dive down into the lakes, where we meet the fish who live there.
From there we begin another journey. “If you were a drop of water in cold, deep Lake Superior, you would spend years slipping along on the currents,” we read. The watercolor and digital illustrations show a map, and we follow that drop from lake to lake, river to river, over Niagara Falls and to the Atlantic Ocean.
The book moves on to tell readers how much water is in the Great Lakes and explain (with great visual details) the importance of their fresh water, citing staggering facts sure to engage young readers’ attention. The book ends by emphasizing the importance of protecting the Great Lakes.
Backmatter includes an author’s note and a message from a member of the Ojibwe Nation about being a Great Lakes caretaker.
Alice B. McGinty (alicebmcginty.com) is the award-winning author of 50 books for children and runs the Words on Fire Writing Camp for Teens during the summer: wordsonfirecamp.wordpress.com/.
