Property Brothers bring their first children’s book to Las Vegas
They’ve bought, built and renovated plenty of properties. But, on Monday, all Jonathan and Drew Scott needed to design for an eager audience were their own signatures on the cover page of their first-ever children’s book.
The setting was the Discovery Children’s Museum and the project was a book-signing event with the brothers, better known to fans of do-it-yourselfdom as the Property Brothers and the stars of several hit HGTV series.
The brothers last week released their first children’s book, “Builder Brothers: Big Plans” ($17.99, HarperCollins, with illustrations by Kim Smith). The picture book features the brothers as kids who’ve decided to build a doghouse, and even includes directions for a do-it-yourself project that young readers can do with their parents.
The brothers say the book — aimed at kids ages 4 to 8 — will be the first in a series. For it, they drew on their real-life experiences as kids who loved to build stuff, including, once, a doghouse for a neighbor’s pet.
“In the book, we build the doghouse too small and we thought it was just a failure, and we realize that whether or not it holds up, you learn from mistakes and grow from it,” Drew said. “So the book is a great lesson for kids to know failure is not a bad thing.”
Drew said he and Jonathan “have always wanted to write something like this,” in part because “we keep seeing this audience of youth who love our show.”
“Kids love the show and want to design their own rooms and even dress up as us on Halloween,” Jonathan said.
“It’s also great that our show is relatable for the whole family,” Drew added. “Kids love to see us working together.
“Kids love to dream and have a sense of wonder, and they have these creative minds. So we try to encourage them the way our parents did.”
Among the brothers’ fans are Madeleine, Elliana and Anjuli Stamper-Kong. That might at least partly be because they’re 11-year-old triplets and can relate a bit to the twin brothers.
Madeleine said she enjoys the brothers’ ability to decorate, design and renovate, while Anjuli and Elliana watch mostly, Elliana said, because “they’re fun.”
As part of their book release, the brothers also holding a contest that will offer a complete makeover to one U.S. public elementary school library. Nominations can be made through their web site .
Drew said that while the brothers are pleased that their book offers educational and inspirational messages to kids, they also love “just seeing fans face to face and seeing the kids face to face.”
“And we finally have a book for them,” he added. “It means so much.”
Contact John Przybys at jprzybys @reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0280. Follow @JJPrzybys on Twitter.
