I used this book in my 2nd grade classroom to compare and contrast with another story about the Watts Towers. My kids loved it.Great book, fair price.niceThe package was in good shape when it arrived but the book was waterstained and dented. I never would have chosen this copy had I been in a store, and paid the same price. Returned for a replacement.This is a direct, straight-forward book about, as the title says, the Watts Towers.It doesn't condescend to the reader (or listener). The story is told without any cloying sweetness, and without any enforced sympathy.I can't say how refreshing this treatment can be :)thanks to oscar wilde for the above quote & paticia zelver for the book that brings it to life!i grew up with reading rainbow & still watch it whenever i get the chance ~ i don't believe we ever truly outgrow enjoying being read a wonderful tale, and this book will give you a tale worth telling. it has a powerful & positive message & even better is that it's true! i've used it in classes to spur students into researching different topics, and everyone i've shared it with (regardless of age or ability) has been glad i did.Patricia Zelver tells the story of Simon (Sam) Rodia, an Italian immigrant who 'grew' a dream of monumental proportions in the impoverished Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. It took him over 30 years to build the three amazing towers he named "NUESTRO PUEBLO." In this century it could be called a fantasy dedicated to recycling. When people asked Sam "Why?" he answered "I just felt like it." What creative energy in his imaginative salvaging of mosaic tiles, pieces of pottery, anyone's discards! And there is energy, too, in the colorful paintings of Frane Lessac, all demonstrating the hope symbolized by Rodia's art.I've been checking this out from my public library for the past two years to read to my 1st grade class. The library lost it so now I'll gladly buy it! It incorporates well into my "Earth Day" unit because we concentrate on recycling. It also is a really inspirational story.