Ferdinand Cheval: The Postman Who Delivered a Palace

Self-taught French architect Ferdinand Cheval (1836–1924) stars in this quirky chronicle of the postman’s 33-year-long effort to build a stone palace by hand in Hauterives, France. Cheval “spent his days delivering mail and daydreaming” until a rock inspires him to begin collecting more on his route. Stone by stone, he constructs a water fountain, a grotto, and a passageway, all working up to “His Dream Palace./ His Ideal Palace”—a labyrinthine, sculpture-adorned edifice featuring staircases, balconies, and alcoves. “Learning as he went./ Inventing his own building techniques./ Failing until he succeeded./ Monsieur Cheval did not believe in/ the word impossible.” Whimsical drawings washed in vibrant hues gesture toward the fanciful nature of Le Palais Idéal, shown in photographs alongside a concluding author’s note. With hard work and imagination, anyone can achieve wondrous results, suggest Renaud and Salopek in this beatific ode. Ages 8–up. (Jan.)