The author and illustrator of this book come from theatrical backgrounds. Giovannoni being a playwright and theatre-maker, and Lane being a set, costume and production designer. And this book certainly has a magical theatrical feeling to its pages. In October the play of the same name was released, with this book following.

‘Once there was a lonely little house. This house was all by itself. No-one opened its front doors. It had a lonely, stormy feeling, deep down inside.’

One night, ‘like a kind of magic’, our little house launches itself from the ground and flies up into the sky. The more it flies and sees, the bigger the lonely feelings grow. Until one day the house senses down below the same lonely stormy kind of feeling. It is a little girl.

‘Sometimes it feels like all you need is a little shelter from the storm. Somewhere to keep you safe and warm.’

This little girl walks into the warmly lit house and finds sanctuary from her feelings. She sits by the fire eating marshmallows, explores a library for ‘imagining, dreaming and remembering’. In this house she can sing as loudly as she likes or sit in perfect silence.

This book teaches us that we all have lonely, dark stormy feelings. Sometimes these stormy feelings can feel big. But it is okay as they will pass. We have room for many feelings. ‘The bad feelings and the good. The hard things, and the soft. The lonely bits, and the together ones too.’ In the light of the morning we will discover that the world is really a beautiful place. Something we can all remember.

Reviewed by Jane Stephens

Age Guide 3+

Teachers’ Notes

Teachers’ Activity

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dan Giovannoni is an award-winning playwright and theatre-maker. Dan’s plays for families, young people and adults have been produced across Australia in theatres, school halls, parks, tents and even a barn outside of Hobart. A graduate of NIDA, Dan lives on Wurundjeri country in Melbourne with his husband, daughter and two dogs.

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Charlotte Lane is a visual storyteller and an award-winning set, costume, and production designer. She has worked internationally, bringing imaginary worlds to life for theatre, opera, live performance, screen, events, and installations. Charlotte is a graduate of NIDA, and lives in Naarm (Melbourne) with her young family.