THE HOUSE WITH 100 STORIES

Tochi receives a mysterious piece of mail and climbs 100 stories to meet the sender at the top of a building.

When an unsigned letter floats in his window, Tochi opens it to find a map and an invitation to the highest floor in a tall tower. As he climbs the stairs, Tochi discovers a new animal house every 10 stories. The book is meant to be read vertically, turned on its side, so that the full effect of the ascent is fully visible. Each floor is a well-imagined, detailed peek into the critters’ lives. There’s the mouse house, complete with an exercise wheel; a complex frog shower system involving a leaf that collects rainwater; and, rather than stairs, tubes for the snakes to slither through. Children will need to orient themselves to the book’s unique layout, which takes a bit of effort in sorting out how reading left to right actually means bottom to top as Tochi climbs higher. The story itself is simple, but the illustrations really bring Tochi’s world to life. The unique details, interactions, and whimsical, thoughtful touches make this Japanese import a feast for the eyes and the imagination. The most stunning illustration is the panorama of the tower fading into the night sky, the tiny windows in the distance sparkling alongside the stars in the sky. Tochi has light skin and brown hair.

A vertical journey through a well-imagined, wonder-filled world.