SuitabookWhere I Live
Eileen Spinelli
- Reading
- Read a few poems at a time and pause after major changes. Invite the child to notice images of home, ask how the poem’s shape affects its feeling, and let them choose whether to discuss personal experiences.
- Themes
- Home and belonging: Diana begins deeply attached to her house and familiar surroundings, then has to leave them and make sense of a new place. The familiar home is presented as genuinely comforting, while moving is painful but not portrayed as wholly destructive; adaptation gradually becomes possible.
- Friendship and change: Diana leaves Rose, her best friend, but later meets Sam, who shares interests in astronomy and games. The story values the original friendship while allowing a new one to develop, suggesting that moving on need not erase earlier bonds.
- Family pressures and resilience: A lost job and a grandfather’s fall contribute to the move; Diana also experiences affectionate, sometimes irritating sibling interactions. The pressures are treated as upsetting but part of ordinary family life, with affection and practical adaptation alongside distress.
- Worth knowing
- The move follows a parent losing a job, while a grandparent’s injury or illness also affects family plans. A child who has experienced relocation, financial strain or a sick relative may appreciate advance emotional support.