The Picture Show : NPR

Lindsey Anderson sits down to read Caps for sale by Esphyr Slobodkina to her children Orion, 6, Arthur, 4, and Thora Hoke, 1, in the book-inspired exhibit inside The Rabbit hOle, an immersive museum dedicated to children’s literature, in North Kansas City, Missouri.

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Lindsey Anderson sits down to read Caps for sale by Esphyr Slobodkina to her children Orion, 6, Arthur, 4, and Thora Hoke, 1, in the book-inspired exhibit inside The Rabbit hOle, an immersive museum dedicated to children’s literature, in North Kansas City, Missouri.

Katie Currid for NPR

In children’s museums across the country, there are many similar exhibits: the water exploration table, the children’s grocery store, the colorful jungle gym. But at the Rabbit hOle, an innovative and immersive museum dedicated to children’s literature that opened March 12 in North Kansas City, Mo., you won’t find those things, which is exactly what the co-wanted. founder Pete Cowdin.

“There’s so much repetition, there’s so much similarity, because most exhibits and most children’s museums across the country are built by a handful of design firms,” Cowdin says. “All of those things are good, but I think there’s room for a different kind of experience.”

Cowdin co-founded The Rabbit hOle with his wife, Deb Pettid, after years as booksellers and owners of a beloved Kansas City children’s bookstore, the Reading Reptile. Today, the two men run a groundbreaking space in a 150,000-square-foot former warehouse, employing more than 20 full-time artists and makers to bring children’s books to life in interactive exhibits.

Casey Sackin explores the museum entrance.

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Casey Sackin explores the museum entrance.

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A mouse on a book bike Anatoleby Eve Titus, visits an exhibition in Paris.

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A mouse on a book bike Anatoleby Eve Titus, visits an exhibition in Paris.

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“We want to bring a more critical culture to children’s literature,” Cowdin says, “not in an effort to tear it down, but to bring up what’s really taking away from the art of picture bookmaking or the “art of creating literature for young people.”

The museum owns the rights to more than 70 works of children’s literature from the last century and works with the writers and illustrators or estates of these books to bring them to life in unique, interactive exhibitions. The museum features exhibits based on well-known children’s classics like Where the sidewalk ends by Shel Silverstein, Curious George by HA and Margret Rey, Madeleine by Ludwig Bemelmans and, perhaps most popular, a recreation of the actual play by good night moonthe book written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd, where young and old can explore the Great Green Room.

Neon rabbit-shaped signs adorn the top of the building housing The Rabbit hOle.

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Neon rabbit-shaped signs adorn the top of the building housing The Rabbit hOle.

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Madelyn Williams, 20 months, leads her mother, Nancy, through the kitchen from Blueberries for Salby Robert McCloskey.

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Madelyn Williams, 20 months, has been guiding her mother, Nancy, through cooking since Blueberries for Salby Robert McCloskey.

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But the museum also presents lesser-known children’s books, such as Pérez and Martinaa story based on a Puerto Rican folk tale by Pura Belpré and illustrated by Carlos Sanchez, or Uptownby the late John Steptoe, who brings to life a Harlem storefront, created in collaboration with Steptoe’s children.

“Our mission is to inspire the reading lives of children and adults,” says Emily Hane, head of development and grants at The Rabbit hOle. “We want to be a place where kids can really discover the types of stories they love that they may not have been exposed to before – whether that’s because they’ve never seen a book images with a child who looks like them, or heard cultural stories that might resonate in their own home.

LEFT: Cal Kreiling, 16 months, looks at a mouse on a bicycle from the book Anatole. RIGHT: Parker Crawford, 18 months old, knocks on the door of a tree inside the museum.

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LEFT: Cal Kreiling, 16 months, looks at a mouse on a bicycle from the book Anatole. RIGHT: Parker Crawford, 18 months old, knocks on the door of a tree inside the museum.

Katie Currid for NPR

In the museum, visitors enter through a burrow and rabbit hole and can play in Robert McCloskey’s kitchen. Blueberries for Salor take a nap against the tree at Esphyr Slobodkina Caps for sale. They can then collect the book inspired by the exhibition and enjoy the pages they saw come to life. Cowdin says kids are truly the leaders in the field.

“We don’t tell parents and children how to use the space and what they should (do), we ask them to explore, find the books that are there, find the exhibits and do the “experience the exhibitions, and then to gather around the book again to read the book,” Cowdin says. “The objective of the project is to bring young people, but also parents and educators, closer to history.”

The museum took inspiration from places like the City Museum of St. Louis or the Meow Wolf art installation, which create avant-garde spaces that don’t have a “right” or “wrong” way to interact with the exhibitions.

Customers browse books in The Rabbit hOle’s bookstore.

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Customers browse books in The Rabbit hOle’s bookstore.

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LEFT: Fabricator Gen Goering paints the walls of an exhibit before the museum opens to the public. RIGHT: Rabbit feet and arrows mark the sidewalks outside the Rabbit Hole.

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LEFT: Fabricator Gen Goering paints the walls of an exhibit before the museum opens to the public. RIGHT: Rabbit feet and arrows mark the sidewalks outside the Rabbit Hole.

Katie Currid for NPR

“If all we did was create a beautiful place for kids, it would honestly be rare,” Cowdin says. “We have done more than that and we will continue to build on that.”

In addition to book exhibits, The Rabbit hOle also includes a bookstore and will soon host author talks and open a room for making crafts based on the museum’s exhibits. The museum also plans to open a resource library for educators and scholars, and will also have rotating exhibition spaces and a history and printing laboratory, with room to accommodate residencies for authors and illustrators.

“Whenever you talk about kid culture, there’s this (idea): ‘Oh, it’s good enough. It’s for the kids, you know, just do it cheap. They don’t deserve really something beautiful,’” says Hane. . “And that’s the exact opposite of how The Rabbit hOle feels. We think kids deserve something beautiful. Yes, it’s going to be durable. Yes, we’re going to be able to sterilize it and clean it and everything. But just because “Just because it’s for kids, that doesn’t mean it’s a lesser art form.”

A team of makers works on the exhibition inspired by the book Everyone needs a rock by Byrd Baylor in January, before the museum opened to the public.

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A team of makers works on the exhibition inspired by the book Everyone needs a rock by Byrd Baylor in January, before the museum opened to the public.

Katie Currid for NPR

The museum features an exhibit bringing the play from the classic children’s book to life. good night moonwritten by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd.

Katie Currid for NPR

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The museum features an exhibit bringing the play from the classic children’s book to life. good night moonwritten by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd.

Katie Currid for NPR

Katie Currid is a photographer based in Kansas City.