
Book Title: In Every House on Every Street (available here)
Author: Jess Hitchman
Illustrator: Lili La Beleine
Publisher: Little Tiger Press
Publication Date: June 2020
Suitable For: EYFS & KS1
Reviewed By: Jo Littlewood
In Every House on Every Street takes us behind the doors and windows of one house in one street. It shows us the family, the community and the love that resides there. As we are shown around the house we learn that the rooms are not just rooms, they are places to play, care and feel together. And we learn that behind every door, there is a family with a story to tell.
This was a lovely rhyming book that takes the reader on a journey. It teaches them that the four walls and wonky bricks you see are just the building, and the home is inside in the people and the stories that live there. In this home, every room has its own story and its own personality but most importantly each room is filled with love.
The cover was the first thing that drew me to this book, with the illustration of a multicultural street, where everyone appears to have a role – whether they are indoors or outdoors they all appear to be connected. Hidden inside the doors of these houses, it felt like each home had its own story to tell. I would probably use this in the classroom to encourage children to write their own story or poem about home. This would be a great book to get children engaged in a topic about what home means to them.
At the end of the book, there is a wonderful cut out page showing a glimpse into each of the homes which could be used to encourage children to predict what is happening behind the glass. Opening out the page it is possible to see if that prediction is correct. There are lots of opportunities for picture comprehension and inference in the picture.
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You can order In Every House on Every Street online or from your local bookshop.
Many thanks to the publisher for sending us a review copy of this book and to Review Panel member Jo for reviewing it.
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