House and Home in Picture Books

We’ve gotten our first real snow of the year, and it’s put me in the mood to hunker down at home with a book and a mug of tea. Home is such a big concept, especially to kids, representing safety, love, and family. The picture books below explore the idea of houses and homes. Some characters are focused on finding a home; others on making a house into a home. Curl up with one of these and someone you love.

Eloise by Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight (1955)

Eloise is one of my childhood favorites. What a glamorous life she lived, getting to call The Plaza Hotel her home! Knight’s illustrations make the girl’s mischief and joy jump off the page, with a fantastic use of a two-color pallette. Oooooh I absolutely love this book.

A Home for Bird by Philip C. Stead (2012)

The book overflows with sweetness. Vernon finds Bird when out foraging. Though Bird doesn’t speak, Vernon can tell Bird isn’t happy. So he sets about finding a home for his new friend. Their adventures are delightful and the twist at the end will tickle you.

If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen (2012)

Van Dusen’s cartoon-like illustrations are always a hit in our house. His rhyming text tells of a creative soul’s ideas for the perfect house, which get wilder and wilder. While I would be thrilled with a larger kitchen and central air conditioning, Van Dusen’s protagonist imagines a room without gravity and a Fish Tank Room one can swim through.

Windows by Julia Denos and E. B. Goodale (2017)

In this soothing book, a kid takes a walk at dusk in his city and enjoys the scenes he sees in the windows he passes. There are parties, dance classes, hugs, and televisions. But the best window is the one back at home, with his mother waving.

Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler (2019)

Based on family stories, Home in the Woods shows how a family makes a shack in the woods into a home during the Depression. A single mother with eight kids occupies the house. Although Wheeler doesn’t hide the struggles, she focuses on the way the family works together and finds the joys in their lives.

Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall (2022)

Farmhouse tells the story of a house and the large family that lived within. But if you read the author’s note, you will learn that Blackall built the illustrations from artifacts from the house itself — wallpaper and other scraps and fragments. This book will reward those who reread and scrutinize the lively pictures.