BEFORE I LIVED HERE

Travel back through time to see how the landscape in a Colorado neighborhood evolves through the ages.

As the story opens on a luminous full-bleed spread of the Rockies, a child narrator reflects: “I see the mountains from my house…But my house wasn’t always here.” With that revelation, debut author Jensen invites readers to consider that history happens under their own feet. The book then moves backward chronologically. Some jumps are short, showing the house being constructed “two years ago.” Others, like a scene set 66 million years in the past that depicts Triceratops and Edmontosauruses roaming tropical jungles, are staggering. Beyond the fascinating geological shifts, Jensen also unflinchingly addresses Colorado’s thorny human history. The Homestead Act of 1862 led to settlers establishing “cabins and corrals…built on stolen land” belonging to the Ute tribe. A final stop “one billion years ago” brings the narrative full circle as a frenetic page of tectonic activity shows the majestic mountains that opened the book first “burst[ing] through the earth.” Ngai’s precisely lined, radiant mixed-media illustrations pull readers into each moment, from an image of an unperturbed cow gazing outward to sepia-tinged depictions of the Ute camp and an exquisite rainbow scratchboard revealing shadows of the past. Complex yet comprehensible and suffused with rich science and social science content, including an excellent glossary, this is an invaluable resource for educators and curious youngsters alike.

Jensen’s tour through time is a tour de force.