The House of Four Seasons

When Father, Mother, Billy, and Suzy go house hunting in the country, they fall in love with a grand old house nestled among tall weeds and trees. The house is in need of repair and soon a carpenter, mason, and tinsmith come to set things straight, but it needs new paint too. The family agrees it would be more fun to paint it themselves, but no one can agree on the color, and to make matters worse, the hardware store only carries three colors: red, blue, and yellow! But Father has an idea. “You’ll see,” he says, “colors can do many tricks when they get together,” and with a sudden flourish, Roger Duvoisin the magician reveals a color wheel in the midst of this cheerful tale. Budding artists and engineers will love this surprising story, and adults would do well to note how Father arrives at a winning trifecta of negotiation, education, and thrift.

Roger Duvoisin (1900–1980) was born to a French-Swiss family in Geneva, where?he began a career in art and textile design before immigrating to the United States?in 1925. Duvoisin collaborated with many writers,?including his wife, Louise Fatio Duvoisin, and Alvin?Tresselt, with whom he won a Caldecott Award?for White Snow, Bright Snow in 1948 and the?Caldecott Honor Award for Hide and Seek Fog?in 1966. He is best known for his classic of children’s?literature, Petunia.