When I was in primary school, circa sometime in the late ’80s, the school held an art competition that required us to imagine what our lives would be like in the then-faraway new millennium — err, which is right smack where we are now. Looking back, it’s quite funny how we were all drawing Jetsons-like flying cars when the most significant inventions today would probably be in the area of communications, rather than transportation: computers, the internet and smartphones. That said, if Chris Van Dusen were in the competition, he’d probably win hands down.

As the title suggests, If I Built a House is an exhilarating tour through one wildly imaginative and creative boy’s ultimate fantasy house — and wow, what a house it is, with an anti-gravity room, an aquarium room and a racetrack among other fantastic features.

While the incredible retro-futuristic — in the spirit of The Jetsons — double-page spreads of the various rooms are the clear highlight here, the rhyming text is also fun to read. An inspiring book for the avid Lego builders of today, who may yet grow up to be the great architects of the future!

If you liked this book, check out If I Built a Car by the same author.