"One day, Kamala and Maya had an idea. A big idea: they would turn their empty apartment courtyard into a playground! Based on a true story, this is the uplifting tale of how the author's aunt and mother first learned to persevere in the face of disappointment and turned a dream into reality. This is a story of children's ability to make a difference and of a community coming together to transform their neighborhood." -- jacket.

Step-by-step instructions show how to build detailed LEGO models of neighborhoods - complete with homes, stores, restaurants, barbershops, and more. Enter the fantastical world of model building. The LEGO Neighborhood Book 2 is a full-color guide to creating intricate, bustling LEGO neighborhoods, and cities. In this second volume, a follow up to the runaway best-selling first volume, readers learn even more ways to create classic architectural styles...

Annotation

Our traditional image of Chicago-as a gritty metropolis carved into ethnically defined enclaves where the game of machine politics overshadows its ends-is such a powerful shaper of the city's identity that many of its closest observers fail to notice that a new Chicago has emerged over the past two decades. Larry Bennett here tackles some of our more commonly held ideas about the Windy City-inherited from such icons as Theodore Dreiser, Carl Sandburg,...

Abandoned lots and litter-strewn pathways, or rows of green beans and pockets of wildflowers? Graffiti-marked walls and desolate bus stops, or shady refuges and comfortable seating? What transforms a dingy, inhospitable area into a dynamic gathering place? How do individuals take back their neighborhood? Neighborhoods decline when the people who live there lose their connection and no longer feel part of their community. Recapturing that sense of...