Notre-Dame is one of the world’s most famous cathedrals as well as one of the most recognizable landmarks in Paris, France. When it caught fire in 2019, the steeple toppled to the ground and much of the attic burned. People around the world waited to see if the nearly nine-century old church could be saved.

The story of Notre-Dame throughout history and its repair after the fire is told in a nonfiction picture book, Notre-Dame: The world’s Cathedral by Lynn Curlee. Filled with facts, it’s great for young readers who are drawn to stories about real-life places. Curlee covers events like the settling of Paris by a Celtic tribe called Parissii. He goes on to write about Roman history and what the church meant to the people who built it. Illustrations show architectural features as well as familiar pieces of Notre-Dame, like the sculptures of gargoyles.

Pages at the back give statistics and interesting facts as well as a glossary of terms and a bibliography for anyone who wants to read more. It’s dense material, but it should be fun for kids who like to read history and are interested in how this famous building was put back together.

The publisher provided me with a copy of this book for review.