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One House for All

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One House for All Reviews | Toppsta

Book Rating: 4 based on 13
13 Reviews
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A universal story about compromise and collaboration for young readers

Raven, Crayfish and Horse have always been best friends. They're grown up now and would like to start a family. They want all their families to live together and start planning to build a house. But what should that house look like? Will they find a solution that works for all of them?

One House for All Reviews | Toppsta

9781911496069

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24th December '17
AS100 read it themselves aged 6 aged 6
One House for All 9781911496069
5 stars
My Son liked the problem solving & compromise that the animals had to make to live together. 
The book is about 3 animal friends, horse, crayfish & raven who when married want to still all live together but realise they all have different needs.
My son thought the artwork was unusual but still liked it and added to the story.
Although my 6 year old really liked this story would say probably better suited to a younger age and read to a child.
10th January '19
I read it to Infant Hall Assembly aged 4 to 8
One House for All 9781911496069
5 stars
One House for All has a lovely, simple, patterned storyline and can be read with the kind of dramatic emphasis which goes down well when you are sharing a story with a large group of children. It helped in the telling to physically demonstrate the different levels on which the Raven, Horse and Crayfish were living and how the different floors of their new house would accommodate them and their future families. Children's answers to questions at the end of the story showed that they understood the point, that although the characters were very different, they were willing to accommodate one another's requirements.  They also appreciated the fact that these different animals were determined to remain friends, no matter what. The illustrations are colourful and appealing and after break time, some of the year 1 children drew what they thought the new 3 storey house would look like, which again demonstrated their understanding.  All in all, a marvellous, thoughtful tale for assembly which also has a lot of potential for related activities in class.
10th December '17
I read it to dani aged 5 aged 5
One House for All 9781911496069
5 stars
This is a fantastic book. Crayfish, Horse, and Raven want to build a home for their families to live in together. Each comes up with a plan that is suitable to their needs but not the needs of their friends. This causes them to wonder if they can maintain their friendships while having families. In the end, they realize that they can meet all their needs by building a house over 3 levels. This will allow each family to have what they need while allowing them all to join together by the river. They are able to keep their friendships and their dreams while raising their families together. 
The art is stylized and colorful and really adds to the story. I loved how they all work to consider everyone's needs. They do have moments of stubbornness and worry that is very realistic. My daughter enjoyed saying when the ideas wouldn't work and was happy with the ending. This book leads to discussions about the differences between animals, along with how to work with your friends to come up with compromises. I would recommend it highly.
10th December '17
I read it to Suzanne aged 8 aged 8 & to Alexandra aged 5 aged 5
One House for All 9781911496069
5 stars
In this book, three friends – Horse, Crayfish and Raven – want to build a house together to live with their families. However, it turns out that it's a bit difficult to design one house for so diffrent species of animals.
This is a highly enjoyable read. The beautiful pictures are visually stunning and the author writing style is both engaging and friendly, which makes the topic understandable for children.
The illustrations are epic - they look like there were painted by a really talented child. Every page is very colourful and the images attract the eye. 
This is a very well made book as it is designed perfectly - it's sturdy so it will last long.
We have been reading it every night since we got it so I think it's the best recommendation
18th December '17
I read it to Abi aged 2 aged 2
One House for All 9781911496069
5 stars
A lovely story about three friends: Horse, Raven and Crayfish. They want to get married but also live together with all their families. However, Crayfish lives underwater, Horse lives on ground and Raven in the trees. Thankfully they come up with a satisfactory solution. A nice story which reminded me of the Anansi and Aesop tales. 

The vibrant illustrations by Juris Petraskevics are warm and striking, drawing you into the story. 
25th December '17
I read it to Reception SA aged 4 to 5
One House for All 9781911496069
4 stars
A lovely story about compromise among friends the children enjoyed the unusual illustrations and it made a great starting point for a construction activity. We designed houses that would allow two different animals to live together, thinking about what each might need.
10th December '17
I read it to Bean912 aged 5 aged 5
One House for All 9781911496069
4 stars
The first thing that I really loved about this book,was the absolutely beautiful and very colourful watercolour illustrations that covered the entire page behind the text. The book really was a great showcase for these. 

The story about a raven, horse and crayfish trying to design a house in which they could live together whilst meeting all of their needs, was good conceptually and provided a discussion point about differences and how friends compromise to please everyone. 

However, the ending to the book seemed a little abrupt. It would have been nice to have seen them all living in the new house as well or working together to build it (maybe looking at the different skills each animal had too). 
5th June '18
I read it to Matilde aged 6 aged 6
One House for All 9781911496069
4 stars
One house for all is a wonderful story about friendship. 
Three very different friends have to work out how stay close each other considering their contrasting needs.
This book is a engrossing way to teach respect and problem solving to children. 
At first I wasn't sure about the style of illustration, I thought wasn't enough attractive for a child but my daughter love it.
We really enjoy read this book together but me and my daughter agree that it seems missing a final illustration. We turned the last page with big excitement,  looking forward to see how could look like the house but we discover the book was already finished.
5th June '18
I read it to Matilde aged 6 aged 6
One House for All 9781911496069
4 stars
One house for all is a wonderful story about friendship. 
Three very different friends have to work out how stay close each other considering their contrasting needs.
This book is a engrossing way to teach respect and problem solving to children. 
At first I wasn't sure about the style of illustration, I thought wasn't enough attractive for a child but my daughter love it.
We really enjoy read this book together but me and my daughter agree that it seems missing a final illustration. We turned the last page with big excitement,  looking forward to see how could look like the house but we discover the book was already finished.
19th December '17
I read it to Iowsienna aged 4 aged 4
One House for All 9781911496069
4 stars
Quite a sweet simple story about friendship and compromise with beautiful illustrations.
10th December '17
I read it to Little One aged 3 aged 3
One House for All 9781911496069
3 stars
The illustrations of this book are far different to books I have shared with my eldest daughter who is 3 years old. We enjoy sharing books and it is this element of uniqueness that drew us to this read. 

The story is based on three friends Crayfish, Horse, and Raven. They are dear friends and really would like to live together, with each other and their families. The problems lies in everyone's preferences and of course as they are completely different animals some habitats don't suit others. 

The concept of building a house that suits all was an interesting topic of discussion for my daughter and I. It was also interesting to see how the animals reacted to each other and a positive in that they didn't give up but found a good solution. 

The language at times for example the idea of being married was slightly lost on my 3 year old daughter, especially when in the opening page the animals discuss that they were not yet married but they wanted to and they wanted to live together.

However, for older children the idea of planning and marriage (should you wish to) would be better understood.

My daughter was so intrigued by the illustrations as  I was. The pages are so colourful and the unique illustrations are a nice introduction to my daughter that all book illustration don't need to follow the same style. 

The ending of the story concludes that the animals
find a solution to their dilemma however, my daughter and I both felt it ended abruptly. 

The book would be a great read to share when discussing friendship and animals and their habitats.
13th December '17
I read it myself (an adult)
One House for All 9781911496069
3 stars
A beautifully illustrated book that takes you on a journey with 3 very different friends. The story was very traditional where you could feel a moral/lesson being presented. Such great friendships showing that there's always a way that everyone can be happy, despite their different needs. 
It would work well with a class but I'm unsure how 'entertaining' individual readers would find it without an accompanying conversation. 
11th January '18
I read it to RC13 aged 4 aged 4
One House for All 9781911496069
3 stars
My daughter enjoyed the pictures in this book more than the story. She didn't really understand the story and had a lot of questions.
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About Inese Zandere

Inese Zandere has been writing since 1990 and is one of the foremost poets for children in Latvia with fice poetry collections to her name. She is also one of Latvian's best-loved authors of novels and fiction, with over twenty novels published to date. Inese Zandere is also the chief editor and publisher at the Riga children's publishing house, Liels un maz...

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