A House in the Woods
by Inga Moore
Picture book
* * * * Stars (Great!)
Once upon a time there were two pigs living in the woods in homes they had built for themselves – a den and a hut. When they return after a walk, they find that a bear and a moose have moved in, respectively. Due to their large size, they destroy the pigs’ homes when they get up to greet them. Finding themselves suddenly homeless, the animals decide to enlist the help of the beavers (who want to be paid in peanut butter sandwiches) to build a new, larger house that they can all share. It takes a lot of hard work, but they all cooperate and eventually the new house is built and the animals move in (after paying their bill). Bedtime finds them all upstairs, snoozing in their new-to-them beds (they got all of their furniture from a junkyard), and readers are invited to say goodnight to each. A sweet story of cooperation and friendship. There are no problems in this book, only solutions. And the matter-of-fact telling of it (readers will be asked to suspend their disbelief several times for this story to work, but they’ll do it happily) will make you smile, and occasionally laugh out loud. If only human contractors would work for peanut butter sandwiches!
Reviewed by YA Librarian
