A House That Once Was

A New York Times Best Illustrated book
A Boston Globe Best Children's Book of 2018

"Accompanied by Lane's evocative art that suggests layers of history, Fogliano's story turns this childhood scenario into a radiant poem about the mysteries of other people and the wonderfulness of home." --New York Times

Deep in the woods
is a house
just a house
that once was
but now isn't
a home.

Who lived in that house? Who walked down its hallways? Why did they leave it, and where did they go?

Two children set off to find the answers by piecing together clues found, books left behind, forgotten photos, and discarded toys, creating their own vision of those who came before, in this deeply moving tale of imagination by Ezra Jack Keats Award-winning author Julie Fogliano and Caldecott Award-winning illustrator Lane Smith.

Julie Fogliano is the New York Times-bestselling author of And Then It's Spring and If You Want to See a Whale, as well as the poetry collection, When Green Becomes Tomatoes. Recipient of the 2013 Ezra Jack Keats Award, her books have been translated into more than ten languages. Julie lives in the Hudson Valley with her husband and three children. When she is not folding laundry or wondering what to make for dinner, she is staring out the window waiting for a book idea to fly by.

Lane Smith is the author and illustrator of Caldecott Honor book Grandpa Green, runaway New York Times bestseller It's a Book, Kate Greenaway Medalist There Is a Tribe of Kids, and A Perfect Day, among others. He was named the 2012 Carle Artist and received the 2014 Society of Illustrators lifetime achievement award. He lives in an old house in Connecticut with the designer Molly Leach.