If You Lived Here: Houses of the World
By Giles Laroche
The Story
A journey around the world explores real homes shaped by their surroundings, from bedrooms carved into Spanish mountains to a floating house in the Netherlands that rotates to catch both the sunrise and sunset.
Why It's Special
For the kid who asks why houses look the way they do, this book turns that curiosity into a trip around the globe, one home at a time.
- Big idea: Where people live is never an accident — houses grow out of climate, materials, history, and the lives of the people inside them.
- Vibes: Curious, informative, and quietly wondrous — like flipping through a very good atlas.
Perfect For Kids Who
- enjoy learning how things are built and why
- are working on understanding different cultures and ways of life
- love pausing over detailed pictures to spot every feature
- respond well to nonfiction with a strong sense of place
Ask Your Little Reader
- Real-life connection: Which house in the book is most different from your own home?
- Imagination: What would it be like to sleep in a bedroom carved out of a mountain, like the cave dwellings in Guadix, Spain?
- Story & problem-solving: Why do you think people built houses on stilts, like the palafitos on Chiloe Island?
- Imagination: If your house could rotate like the floating house in the Netherlands, which view would you want to wake up to?
- Real-life connection: What materials do you see used to build houses in your neighborhood?
