Home

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It was disappointing to see an apartment being depicted as in the city amongst pollution and graffiti, which read (to me) as less desirable than many of the other homes.

The illustrations are mainly whimsical depictions of various types of homes, of both people and animals, around the world. The writing and the illustrations blew me away and the story kept my daughter entertained while we were reading! However, don’t expect to be blown away and there are far better similar children’s books on the market.

Carson Ellis attempts to expand acceptance and preclude any judgments towards the classification of homes in, “Home”. She also cleverly shows you how the very same home can look quite different, as with her comparison of a “clean” home versus a “messy” home. I found that while I appreciated the individual homes beings portrayed, somehow their juxtaposition just didn't work for me. Carson lives on a farm in Oregon with Colin, their two sons, two cats, one llama, three goats, many chickens, and an unfathomable multitude of tree frogs. The picture book debut of Carson Ellis, acclaimed illustrator of the Wildwood series and Lemony Snicket’s The Composer is Dead, this is a gorgeous, imaginative celebration of the many possibilities of home.

One criticism I have seen that strikes me as misguided is the one that claims that the scene set in a Middle-Eastern palace, complete with underground lair containing piles of gold, is an example of some kind of Orientalist exotification. Carson has been awarded silver medals by the Society of Illustrators for her work on Wildwood Imperium and on Dillweed's Revenge by Florence Parry Heide. I appreciated Ellis' subtle but appealing color palette, and found that her use of stylized figures and objects helped to create a charmingly retro-vintage feeling.

I don't know what it was about it (something about the shape of the lines maybe) but I could honestly look at it all day; I want to frame it and put it on my wall.

Although “Home” is intended for small children; the author and illustrator Carson Ellis is known amongst adults as the wife of Colin Meloy, lead singer of the band, The Decemberists.

We loved the cover which shows homes such as a yurt, a barn, a caravan, a geodesic dome, a shoe with a roof, a snail shell. She uses her colours sparingly, browns, greys, greens and reds to great effect as we follow a little bird - a migrator free to travel anywhere - around the world (both real and imaginary) to places we may never visit. if my children were younger we would have loved to sit and look at this and decide which one we liked best and who we thought would live in each one. Recommended to fans of Ellis' artwork, or to those who have enjoyed Jon Klassen's books, which have a very similar visual feeling to them.