Juno is angry at her mum. She has gone away and left Juno with her grandfather for the summer. There is nothing exactly wrong with her grandfather. He is kind and patient and a good cook, but Juno had plans with her friends for the holidays and mum has gone and spoilt everything.

At ten, her mum believes she old enough to be left behind, so she can pursue what she loves to do – help people. But Juno can only see the gap that her mum has left. It was always dad who went away to foreign countries to work with refugees and displaced people, not mum.

But mum yearns to be back alongside dad, doing what they did together before Juno was born. Juno feels betrayed, and feels that mum cares more for the children she doesn’t even know, than Juno herself.

Grandad tries to help, but lets Juno work through her feelings in her own time. She begins to explore her grandfather’s huge house, and finds a crumbling dollhouse in an attic. At first she believes it’s not worth doing anything with, but when she discovers a tiny doll family, she knows she wants to fix the house.

Together, Juno and her grandfather do so much more, and Juno begins to slowly understand how her mum feels and why she had to leave.

Katya Balen’s delightful style of writing shines again in this novel perfect for reluctant readers, with it’s short chapters, beautiful illustrations by Richard Johnson, and a topic we can all relate to.

Not only is it personally relatable, Little House illuminates what is happening in the world today, with so many displaced, and needing kind strangers and professionals like Juno’s parent’s help.

Stories like this can help make sense of the world to children who might see images or headlines about disruptions and conflicts abroad. Empathy flows from this story, from Juno’s mum, her kind grandfather, and then Juno herself – wanting to house a long forgotten family.

Author – Katya Balen

Illustrator – Richard Johnson

Age – 7+

(2024, Harper Collins, Dyslexic, Dyslexia, Quick Reads, Reluctant Readers, Love, Family, Grandparent, Missing someone, Understanding, Woodcraft, Dollhouse, Empathy, Helping people, Misplaced, Refugee)