Description
Description
This author-illustrator debut from Caldecott honor-winning creator Janelle Washington (Choosing Brave) is a timeless ode to one family's kitchen table: stained, scratched, and full of love.
The heart of this family's home beats steadily at the round wooden kitchen table. Every morning, they gather around it for breakfast. In the afternoons, it's where homework gets done, and where art projects, and sometimes brownies, are made. On Fridays, it's where they prepare the fish fry. Anniversaries, birthday parties, graduations. All are celebrated at their kitchen table. When they tell their stories, it listens. And when they cry, it gives comfort. Their kitchen table is a place for family, friends, and memories.
About the Author
About the Author
Janelle Washington is a paper-cut artist, illustrator, and recipient of the Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Illustrator for illustrating Choosing Brave: How Mamie Till Mobley and Emmett Till Sparked the Civil Rights Movement by Angela Joy. Janelle recently moved back to her hometown, Richmond, Virginia, where she spends time with her parents, sitting around their kitchen table. When she isn't at her childhood home, she enjoys being outside in the sun or inside, cutting her paper-cut designs. The Heart of Our Home is her authorial debut. She is a member of the Guild of American Papercutters.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
"[An] emotionally and visually layered celebration of connection, culture, and family that focuses on the ways a stalwart object can reinforce engagement and community in the everyday." -Publishers Weekly
"The love and warmth the family shares glows on each page." -Booklist "[Washington's] images boast bright colors, rich textures (the grain of the wooden table is particularly eye-catching), and a level of detail so intricate, it's hard to believe the artist relied on cut paper alone. Her straightforward prose often ripples across the page, conveying warmth and visual verve... Pure family joy." -Kirkus
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Bound to Stay Bound Books
Pub date:
2026-03-24
Length:
32 pages
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