In Our Mothers' House

     I feel one of the most important aspects of this story is its correlation to societal events today. Family lifestyles are changing and not everyone in society is understanding of that. This book can really assist in addressing such a challenging topic. I believe it is written in an appropriate manner, where younger children are capable of grasping the message that is portrayed in the story. Again, Patricia Polacco does wonderful, and realistic, drawings to complement her story. Though the pictures are not particularly unique in color use, Polacco brings her story to a real-life setting with plausible characters and events.
     Though this book may not be considered appropriate material to have in all schools across the nation, those that would acknowledge this resource would find it very useful to aid in covering several topic areas. Some of those include: diversity, tolerance, acceptance, community life, home life, and a changing societal view. This could be used in a health lesson discussing family and/or acceptance, or it could be used in a completely different setting such as a writing class. I think it would be a great activity idea to have students write their own "house" stories discussing their families and introducing their lives in order to share with their classmates and appreciate the differences they're confronted with.

In Our Mothers' House
By: Patricia Polacco
Published in 2009