Los Angeles is as layered as the Earth’s core, and nothing gets a diehard Angeleno’s goat more than hearing outsiders reduce this city to tired and boring clichés. “Most longtime Angelenos will tell you that there are many Los Angeleses – both physical and locations of the mind,” writes journalist Lynell George in her new book, “After/Image: Los Angeles Outside the Frame.”
If you, too, are exhausted by the tropes and disses on L.A. and want to help your young kids develop language that celebrates the area’s richness instead, head to the children’s section to get them their own version of we-love-L.A. lit: “Los Angeles Is …,” written by Elisa Parhad and illustrated by Alexander Vidal (pictured below).
You and your little ones will delight in catchy rhymes that ring true (Los Angeles is … “late-night diners” and “mod designers”) and illustrations that showcase our local architecture, geography and culture. Sand – that is, the color of sand – is a motif that runs throughout the illustrations, connecting what outsiders often view as a massive and disjointed place. Los Angeles is … too complicated for words, but a fun board book might help.
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- Elisa Parhad is author of the board book “Los Angeles Is …”
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- Alexander Vidal, illustrator of a new book, “Los Angeles Is.”
