Books about Homes and Houses

A list of our favorite books that feature people and animal homes compiled by Annette Birdsall, Finger Lakes Library System Youth Coordinator.

• Click here to download the full homes and houses book list!

• At Home with Books by Katrina Morse.
  A gentle tale from the Family Reading Partnership about the Bear Family reading from sun-up to lights out with family and friends. Section of read-aloud tips included.
• Badger’s New House by Robin Muller.
  After moving into a grand new house and fixing up his old one for Grandmother Mouse, Badger realizes that he misses his former home.
• The Bed Book by Sylvia Plath.
  Take off on a variety of wildly imaginative beds!
• The Best Place by Susan Meddaugh.
  After traveling around the world to make sure that the view from his screen porch is the best, an old wolf tries drastic measures to get his house back from the rabbit family that had bought it.
• The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Pinkwater.
  Mr. Plumbeam leads his neighbors into changing their homes My house is me and I am it. My house is where I like to be and it looks like all my dreams.
• The Biggest House in the World by Leo Lionni.
  A snail's father advises him to keep his house small and tells him what happened to a snail that grew a large and spectacular shell.
• The Biggest Little House in the Forest by Djemma Bider.
  A group of animals bands together to build a new house in the forest when their old house becomes too small to hold them all.
• Blue Rabbit and Friends by Christopher Wormell.
  In his search for just the right home, Blue Rabbit helps a bear, a goose, and a dog find the perfect place to live.
• A Castle on Viola Street by DyAnne DiSalvo-Ryan.
  A hardworking family gets their own house at last by joining a community program that restores old houses.
• Flora's Surprise by Debi Gliori.
  Flora, a young rabbit, tries to grow a house by planting a brick.
• The Frog House by Mark Taylor.
  When a father and daughter hang an apple-shaped birdhouse in his tree, a frog decides it is the perfect house for him, but soon discovers that it looks a bit too much like an apple when a stream of visitors come to investigate.
• Gluey: A Snail Tale by Vivian Walsh.
  When Celerina the bunny moves into a new house, she doesn't realize that there was already a snail living there and that he is the "magic" that repairs anything she breaks, and even the house itself.
• Goldilocks and the Three Bears retold and illustrated by Jan Brett.
  A beautiful version of the classic story of that little home explorer.
• Good-bye House by Robin Ballard.
  A child says goodbye to the old house before moving with Mama and Papa to a new home.
• Goodbye House by Frank Asch.
• Gugu's House by Catherine Stock.
  Kukamba loves helping her grandmother decorate her mud home in a dusty Zimbabwe village, but when the annual rains partially destroy all her art work, Kukamba learns to see the goodness of the rains.
• The Great Blue House by Kate Banks.
  When its owners leave, a summer house comes alive with the sounds of a mouse nibbling crumbs in the fall, a cat taking shelter in the winter, and rain falling on the roof in the spring.
• Hello House by Linda Hayward.
  A retelling of the Brer Rabbit story.
• Harry’s Home by Catherine Anholt.
  Harry enjoys visiting his grandfather's farm and seeing the homes of all the animals, but in the end he is happy to return to his own home in the city.
• Henry Builds a Cabin by D.B. Johnson. Young Henry Thoreau appears frugal to his friends as he sets about building a cabin. Includes biographical information about Thoreau.
• Hey, Mama Goose! by Jane Breskin Zalben. While seeking a larger home for her many children, the Old Woman visits the dwellings of famous fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters and discovers "There's no place like a shoe."
• Hide and Seek in the Yellow House by Agatha Rose. A mischievous kitten leads his mother on a merry chase of hide-and-seek throughout the tiny world that is their home.
• Home: A Collaboration of Thirty Authors & Illustrators edited By Vera B. Williams.
  Thirty noted authors and illustrators offer interpretations of home in a collaboration whose proceeds go to Share Our Strength, an organization that provides food and shelter to the needy. The eclectic mix of poetry, prose and pictures spans a range of distinct styles and emotions.
• Home by Jeanie Baker.
  A wordless picture book that observes the changes in a neighborhood from before a girl is born until she is an adult, as it first decays and then is renewed by the efforts of the residents.
>Home Lovely by Lynn Rae Perkins.
A girl plants a garden making her trailer home beautiful.
• A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle.
  A hermit crab who has outgrown his old shell moves into a new one, which he decorates and enhances with the various sea creatures he meets in his travels.
• The House Across the Street by Jules Feiffer.
  A little boy imagines what life is like for his neighbors, and fantasizes about what goes on inside their house.
• The House Book by Keith Du Quette.
  Rhyming text celebrates the many parts of a house, from the floor and its welcome mat to the walls, windows, stairs, and roof.
• The House in the Mail by Rosemary Wells.
  In 1927, Emily describes the ordering, arrival, and assembly of a mail-order house for her growing family.
• A House is a House for Me by Mary Ann Hoberman.
  Lists in rhyme the dwellings of various animals and things.
• I Know a Place by Karen Ackerman.
  A child describes a place where all the rooms have warmth, comfort, and love, and it turns out to be home.
• In a People House by Theo Le Sieg.
  A bird and mouse explore what’s in a people’s house in this early reader.
• In My Mother’s House by Ann Nolan Clark.
• In Our House by Anne Rockwell.
  A member of the Bear family explores the rooms in their house, showing all the activities that take place there to make their house a happy home.
• Is This a House for Hermit Crab? by Megan McDonald.
  When Hermit Crab outgrows his old house, he ventures out to find a new one.
• Let’s Go Home: The Wonderful Things About a House by Cynthia Rylant.
  Describes the individual rooms in a house and what they mean to those who use them.
• The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton.
  A country house is unhappy when the city, with all its buildings and traffic, grows up around her.
• A Little House of One’s Own by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers.
  Children make cozy little houses of their own under tables, in arm chairs, boxes, etc.
• Lizard's Home by George Shannon.
  When Snake starts sleeping on the rock where Lizard lives, Lizard must figure out how to get his home back.
• The Mitten by Jan Brett.
  Successively large animals all try to make a home in the mitten lost in the snow, until…
• Mouse Look Out! by Judy Waite.
  Inside an old, abandoned house a mouse searches for a safe place to hide from a cat.
• Mousery by Charlotte Pomerantz.
  When four orphan mice ask for shelter at the home of Sliver and Slice on a cold winter evening, the bad-tempered older mice finally learn to soften their hearts.
• Minerva Louise by Janet Stoeke.
  A hen has fun exploring the house with the red curtains.
• My House by Lisa Desimini.
  Describes a house in different weather and light conditions.
• My Painted House, My Friendly Chicken, and Me by Maya Angelou.
  A South African girl describes her pet chicken, painting special designs on her house, dressing up for school, and her mischievous brother.
• The Napping House by Audrey Wood.
  In this cumulative tale, a wakeful flea atop a number of sleeping creatures causes a commotion, with just one bite.
• New Big House by Debi Gliori.
  A child’s view of a growing families need for more room and a new addition to their old house.
• A New House for Mouse by Peter Horacek.
  Little Mouse decides that her house is too small to hold her big juicy apple. While looking for a new house, she begins to eat the apple. Finally the apple is small enough to fit into her old house.
• Old Henry by Joan Blos.
  Henry's neighbors are scandalized that he ignores them and lets his property get run down, until they drive him away and find themselves missing him.
• Our Old House by Susan Vizuarraga.
  A girl living in an old house finds clues inside and out about its history and former occupants.
• Poppy’s Babies by Jill Barklem.
  Dusty surprises Poppy with a new house on the day their babies receive names from Old Vole.
• Rackety Packety House by F. H. Burnett.
• Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran.
  A hill covered with rocks and wooden boxes becomes an imaginary town for Marian, her sisters, and their friends.
• Sleep, Black Bear, Sleep by Jane Yolen.
  As winter's chill spreads, different animals settle into their cozy homes for a long sleep.
• Someday House by Anne Shelby.
  Describes what it would be like to live in a house on a mountain, by the sea, above a bakery, underground, and in other wonderful places.
• Someplace Else by Carol Saul.
  When she tires of living in her white house in the orchard, Mrs. Tillby sets out to find a different place to call home
• The Sunflower House by Even Bunting and Kathy Hewitt.
• Too Much Noise by Ann McGovern.
  One version of the classic folktale whereby a man learns to live comfortably in his little house.
• The House is Made of Mud by Ken Buchanan.
  Soft watercolors and gentle verses in both English and Spanish describe a family who has built their home in the Sonora Desert- where their lives are interwoven with the environment.
• This is My House by Richard Scarry.
  Illustrations show everyday objects that can be found in a home as well as different types of homes.
• This Is the House That Jack Built by Simms Taback.
  Caldecott Award winner Taback infuses this favorite children's rhyme with his distinctive creative flair and humor.
• Three Little Pigs by Paul Galdone.
  Retells the fatal episodes in the lives of two foolish pigs and how the third pig managed to avoid the same "pigfalls."
• Two Homes by Claire Masurel.
  A young boy named Alex enjoys the homes of both of his parents who live apart but love Alex very much.
• A Very Special House by Ruth Kraus.
  A little boy finds many special things in his house.
• The Village of Round and Square Houses by Ann Grifalconi.
  A grandmother explains to her listeners why in their village on the side of a volcano the men live in square houses and the women in round ones.
• We Keep a Pig in the Parlor by Suzanne Bloom.
  A runaway pig finds life comfortable inside the farmhouse.
• We Were Tired of Living in a House by Liesel Moak Skorpen.
  Four children, a cat, and a dog move to a tree, a raft, a cave, and finally the seashore, enjoying each new dwelling until they discover its drawbacks.
• Who Took The Farmer's Hat? by Joan L. Nodset.
  The wind takes the farmer's hat from his head and he can't find it anywhere. When he finally discovers that his hat is the perfect home for a family of birds, he decides to buy a new hat. A simple, appealing story.
• Whose House? by Barbara Seuling.
  A boy imagines himself living in various animals' homes, then decides his own warm house and cozy bed are just right for him.
• William’s House by Ginger Howard.
  Arriving in New England in 1637, William is determined to recreate his home in England but realizes that the climate requires modifications to it.
• The Wonderful House by Margaret Wise Brown.
  Describes the homes of people and animals and then shows a special house for many creatures.

Non-Fiction

• Wonderful Houses Around the World by Yoshio Komatsu (photographs)
• Houses and Homes by Ann Morris.
  Wonderful photos from around the world by this acclaimed photographer
• Homes Around the World by Bobbie Kalman.
• Houses and Homes series by Lerner Publications: Homes on Water, Homes in Hot Places, Homes in Cold Places
• My House Has Stars by Megan McDonald
• Amish Home, Cajun Home, Frontier Home, books by Raymond Bial.
• Castles, Caves and Honeycombs by Linda Ashman. Describes some of the unique places where animals build their homes such as in a heap of twigs, on a castle tower, in a cave, or in the hollow space inside a tree.
• Animal Homes by Everts and Kalman.
• Animal Architects series by W. Wright Robinson.

Poems

• Wake Up, House: rooms full of poems! by Dee Lillegard.
  Thirty-four poems that personify household objects from the bedroom window that greets the sun's morning rays to the nightlight that watches over sleeping dreamers.
• My House is Singing by Betsy Rosenthal.
  Poems about some of the things that are in a child’s home, from furniture and light bulbs to the cocoon of a flowered bedspread, and the feelings associated with them.
• Our Big Home, an Earth Poem by Linda Glaser.

Home Construction

• Building a House by Byron Barton.
  For youngest children.
• How a House Is Built by Gail Gibbons.
  Describes how the surveyor, heavy machinery operators, carpenter crew, plumbers, and other workers build a house.
• How a House Happens by Jan Adkins.
  For older children.

Classics

• Little House in the Big Woods and Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
• The House on 88th St. by Bernard Waber.
  First book in the series about Lyle Crocodile.
• Father Bear Comes Home by Else Minarik.
• Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson.
• The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne.
• The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss.
  Classic portrayal of a family’s struggle to create a new life for themselves on a strange and fantastic tropical island.
• When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant.
  Reminiscences of the pleasures of life in the mountains as a child.
• Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame.
  Mole feels the tug between the excitement of the open road and the comforts of his own home.

• Click here to download the full homes and houses book list!