Pippo The Fool (interactive book)

Pippo The Fool

Reading Level: Grade 2-5

Based on a true story! The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence was a marvel of art, architecture, and engineering. But it lacked a finishing ornament, a crown—a dome! The city fathers had a solution: to invite the finest masters to compete for the chance to design a dome. The rumors of this contest reached the ears of Filippo Brunelleschi, better known in Florence as Pippo the Fool. As soon as he heard about the contest, Pippo knew it was the chance he had been waiting for. “If I can win the contest, I will finally lose that nickname once and for all!” This book tells the story of the construction of an architectural masterpiece—Brunelleschi’s Dome. Tracey E. Fern depicts Pippo’s prickly personality with humor and warmth, and Pau Estrada’s richly detailed illustrations bring Renaissance Florence to life. An excellent way to introduce kids to an important moment in Western engineering and history.

Absolutely wonderful—Pippo Brunelleschi steps from the pages with color, zest, and charm. Bravissimo!” –Ross King, author of ‘Brunelleschi’s Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture’ “ ‘Pippo The Fool’ is a beautifully told story about one man’s cleverness, determination, imagination, and fulfillment. And in the accompanying illustrations, Pau Estrada skilfully employs all four, not only to superbly capture the events of over five centuries ago, but also in the process to create his own quietly monumental achievement” –David Macaulay, MacArthur Fellow “With a great deal of charm and buttressed by understated humor, Fern tells a fictionalized story of Renaissance architect and engineer Filippo Brunelleschi and his most magnificent work, the dome of the Cathedral of Florence. […] Although the primary drama between Pippo and Lorenzo is played out with grade-school churlishness, it offers a handy morality lesson: take joy in one's accomplishments rather than the accolades to which they might lead.”