Who is Coming to Our House? [Board book]

Joseph Slate (Author), Ashley Wolff (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: September 24, 2001 | Age Range: 1 - 4 years | Lexile Measure: 260L (What's this?)

"Who is coming to our house?

Someone, someone," says Mouse.

As Pig makes room, Lamb cleans up, Goose stacks the hay, and Duck lines the crib with eiderdown, Mary and Joseph are on their way by donkey. All the animals welcome the baby Jesus to their home.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Animals clean their stable in preparation for a very special visitor. PW praised this "quiet, understated rendering of the Nativity" that "resonates with genuine warmth and spirit. Wolff's accomplished block prints convey the gentle friendliness and generosity of the occasion." Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1 A beautiful book with an insubstantial text. In a simple story told in rhyme, stable animals ask ``Who is coming to our house?'' `` `Someone, someone,' says Mouse.'' With anticipation, each animal helps to prepare ``their house'' for the unnamed guests. By nightfall, the stable is readied and the animals welcome Mary and Joseph. A double-page illustration shows the animals gazing upon the baby Jesus cradled in his Mother's arms. Wolff uses the same linoleum block and wash technique so effective in A Year of Birds (Dodd, 1984) and A Year of Beasts (Dutton, 1986). As in the earlier titles, the unusual perspectives and figures breaking through the black-lined boundaries add to the visual drama. Here, rich earth tones give a sense of the natural humility and love of the stable birth. Preschoolers and some toddlers will easily recognize most of the animals portrayed, but unless children already know the Christmas story they won't appreciate the importance of the human visitors, since Mary and Joseph are identified only by name. This may not be an obvious first choice as a holiday book or an animal identification book, but it is worth consideration for either shelf. Heide Piehler, Shorewood Public Library, Wis.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 1 - 4 years
  
• Board book: 14 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile; BRDBK edition (September 24, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399234101
• ISBN-13: 978-0399234101
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #174,563 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An instant favorite, a must for Advent December 9, 2001

By John A. Vozenilek III

Format:Board book

Kids all know Santa is coming to their house. Do they know about Jesus coming? If you're looking for ways to give God a little equal time during the pre-Christmas crush, get this book for your kids. Little ones love to hear about animals, so the barnyard perspective of the first Christmas night is particularly effective. They will love the pictures, which depict the busy goings-on of each animal who has a job to prepare the barn for the special visitors. As the pages proceed, a subtle nighttime darkness grows, demonstrating the long wait children will associate with waiting for Christmas: "But it is dark," says Cat. "They will never come," says Rat. "Yes, they'll come, says Mouse. "Someone's coming to this house." The hypnotic cadence of the the spare text will keep them interested and turning pages to find out the answer to the all-important question: "Who is coming to our house?"

I bought this book for my under-two-year-old boys and my nearly five-year-old daughter never misses the nightly reading. It is a new Advent family tradition we all enjoy.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Also Good for One and Two-Year Olds June 6, 2001

By "[e-mail]"

Format:Paperback

Who is Coming to Our House? is a super-favorite of my granddaughters, 14 months and 2-1/2. The black-outlined familiar farm animals and the final picture of the baby Jesus are just what they love. They study the details: apples, Joseph's lantern in the distance, Mary's toes. And the soft verse is hypnotic. A perfect last book before bed. No need to save this one for later. It is becoming my standard baby gift.

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful and simple story of Christmas! January 10, 2004

By Nancy K. Wagner

Format:Board book

I have loved this book for years! It is the sweetest story of Christmas seen through the eyes of the animals. It is my favorite children's Christmas book simply because it is so understated, and yet so powerful. This book is great for toddlers and early readers (my 2nd grader loves reading it to his siblings). A must have for your children's story collection.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful, colorful book for preschoolers. November 15, 1997

By [e-mail]

Format:Paperback

I love this book - my children love this book. We bought it several years ago for my first child; it is now well-loved and well-worn. I teach at a Christian preschool and I am buying each child a copy for Christmas this year. I read it to them last week and the pictures and the suspense of "Who is coming to our house?" held them enthralled and quiet through the entire book...A high recommendation from 12 four-year olds!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book :) December 9, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Board book

I've had this book for 18 years and it's still one of my favorites. I love the simple story line and it tells the story of the birth of Jesus in a unique way. I am working towards becomming a preschool teacher and this will be a must in my classroom. If your looking for the best book for a child this is deffinatly it.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for the very small November 15, 2006

By B. McMartin

Format:Board book

When my sons first started to be really interested in having books read to them (at about 12 or 13 months), this was the first book they repeatedly "requested". One of the reasons this book works is that most pages feature a single animal "speaking" a single sentence. This makes it extremely easy to provide a different voice for each animal. (Just make it up--I use a low, slow voice for the cow; a loud, nasal voice for the goose; a soft, high pitched voice for the mouse; an aristocratic, pompous voice for the peacock, etc.) The simple text and the voices really make this book engaging for the little ones. (Though not requested anymore, my 4 year old is still interested in this book if I'm reading it to his 1 1/2 year old brother). Furthermore, the art is wonderful--detailed and realistic, but not cluttered. This is also a very nice Christmas story--but, of course, the nativity story is lost on a one year old. The main reason my children love this book is the lovely art, the animal voices, and the easy way this book sets up the opportunity to pick out, point to, and name different animals and their sounds. Like other reviewers, I often give this book as baby gifts.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Forgetable Book December 2, 2009

By D. Bedwell

Format:Board book|Amazon Verified Purchase

I bought this book for my 2 y/o daughter based on the rave reviews and it really fell short of expectations for me. It is a cute book with lots of animals, and my daughter does like the animals. However, the purpose of buying this book was to teach the Christmas story and this book does not do that. The whole book, except the last couple pages, are animals in the stable saying "Who is coming to our house?" and cleaning the stable. Then suddenly Baby Jesus is there and the animals know Baby Jesus is coming to their house. That is basically the whole story. It doesn't teach anything about bible story of Christ's birth. I gave it 3 stars because of the appeal of the animals, but I do not recommend this book if you want to teach your child the story of Christ's birth. Don't believe all the rave reviews, buy something else.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Family Tradition at My House November 28, 2006

By Gold E. Locks

Format:Hardcover

I fell in love in love with this book as a young mother and it quickly became a favorite with my kids. Every year as we decorate for Christmas, this book is carefully unwrapped and placed on our coffee table with the manger scene that I have had since childhood. Every grown-up that picks it up wants to know where I got it because they absolutely have to have one. It is the sweetest, most simple story I have come across about the nativity. The sentences are short and rhyming and the story is told from the viewpoint of the animals in the manger. For example,the first lines are: Who is coming to our house? "Someone,someone," whispers Mouse. Each animal tells what job they are going to do to get ready for a 'visitor' that is not seen until the last page. The illustrations are bright and bold and fill in the blanks that the simple text cannot provide. I am now purchasing copies to save for future grandchildren (my kids aren't even married yet:)!)in case the book can't be found when it's time. If you would like to create a family tradition that helps you remember what Christmas is all about then this book should be part of it.