Skyrocketing - Frankfurt skyscrapers for kids

The Frankfurt skyline with its skyscrapers is truly unique in Germany. But not only adult visitors to the city are thrilled by this scenery. The skyscrapers also make children's eyes light up time and again. So it's no wonder that the rare opportunities to walk on various skyscrapers or even to admire Frankfurt from the very top repeatedly become an absolute crowd puller. Whether it's the Skyscraper Festival, which takes place at irregular intervals, or special guided tours, marvelling at Frankfurt's skyscrapers from more than just the outside is a real spectacle for young and old alike.

But as a rule, the skyscrapers remain closed to the public. For interested children, however, there is now nevertheless a nice way to get to know the various buildings that make up the unique image of the skyline in more detail. In their book "Himmelstürmend" Arne Winkelmann and Bettine Gebhardt from the Deutsches Architekturmuseum in Frankfurt introduce the individual skyscrapers to young readers aged 8 and over in a charming, interesting and entertaining way. After a short excursion into Frankfurt's city history, during which important church towers or gatehouses such as the Dreikönigskirche, the Eschenheimer Turm or the Bockenheimer Warte are introduced, a tour of the city centre begins, from the Gewerkschaftshaus to the Westend Tower, the Junior Haus or the Messeturm, to the new ECB Bank building or the striking Westhafen Tower. And the AfE Tower, which was razed to the ground in 2013, is also paid its last respects here.

The individual buildings are each presented on a double page. In addition to a picture and an informative fact sheet with all the important details, there are also other interesting and also curious facts about each tower, presented by the book's mascot Messi. And since pure information transfer is often a bit boring for children, there is also a hands-on activity for each skyscraper, which usually consists of solving a tricky task.

A total of 19 buildings are thus presented in an endearing and informative way. The accompanying tasks not only add to the fun factor of the book. It also has the effect of making the information the child reads about each building stick better in the memory. The whole thing is designed in such a way that young readers need not be surprised if they catch their parents getting lost in reading the book too. A really nice tribute to the Frankfurt skyline that teaches young readers about architecture in a way that is appropriate for children. Absolutely recommended!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp