This Is My Dollhouse

This Is My Dollhouse
Written and Illustrated by Giselle Potter
Schwartz & Wade Books, 2016. Picture Book.

The narrator of this picture book is a girl who has made her own cardboard dollhouse and furnished it with odds and ends, mismatched pieces and handmade touches. She plays with her dollhouse by making things: clothing for her dolls out of ribbon, a breakfast of fried eggs from cut pieces of paper, a rooftop elevator from a paper cup and a string. It's an interactive and imaginative way to play. But when the narrator goes to her friend Sophie's house and sees Sophie's perfect, plastic, store bought dollhouse, she feels self-conscious. Sophie only wants to play the "right" way, and the right way isn't very fun. The narrator worries that if Sophie ever comes over, she won't like her dollhouse. Sophie does come over, and quickly our narrator's shame disappears. Their fun isn't limited by the homemade dollhouse, with its imperfections and repurposed materials. It's expanded by it.

This Is My Dollhouse is about the joy of making things and the value of open ended play. The illustrations and text are charming and might inspire readers to build their very own dollhouse.

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