Suzanne Slade teamed up with Rebecca Bond to produce The House That George Built (Charlesbridge, 2012), a non-fiction picture book about the White House. The author narrates the plans and building of the White House in two-page spreads. On the left-hand page, she writes historical information about George Washington’s decisions in building this special home. On the right-hand page, Slade reprises a version of “This is the house that Jack built”. These pages build with “This is the….that George built”. Bond depicts each scene with detailed watercolor and ink drawings. The information included in two articles in the back of the book, “The Changing President’s House” and “Author’s Note”, provide more interesting details like which president ordered the building of the solarium, indoor pool, movie theater, and hot tub.

Another recent book about the White House is First Garden: The White House Garden and How It Grew by Robbin Gourley (Clarion, 2011). This is another non-fiction picture book that provides anecdotes about the many gardens in this famous home. Alice Waters, the noted chef and owner of Chez Panisse Restaurant and Café in Berkeley, California, wrote the forward for the book.

The White House Historical Association sponsors an informative and fascinating website with content that includes videos that should interest young and not-so-young readers. There are videos of many different subjects concerning our national treasure.