The Heart of Our Home, Janelle Washington
The Heart of Our Home, Janelle Washington
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The Heart of Our Home

Author: Janelle Washington

Narrator: Melinda Sewak

Unabridged: 9 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 03/24/2026

Synopsis

“The audiobook is peaceful; Melinda Sewak's rhythmic narration is accompanied by soft acoustic guitar music that evokes love and warmth...These sounds don't overwhelm the narration; instead they help to make this audiobook an immersive experience for all...” — Booklist (Starred Review)

This 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.

A Macmillan Audio production from Roaring Brook Press

About Janelle Washington

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.

About Melinda Sewak

Melinda Sewak (she/her/hers) is an Emmy-nominated story chaser, whose rich, lyrical, and welcoming voice brings life to an ever-growing cast of characters. Her facility with language is deeply immersive and has added dimension to 25+ audiobooks, ranging from children’s fiction to YA to romantic comedy to fantasy. Melinda has been fine-tuning her ability to convey the truth and the comedy in every story by drawing on her own diverse life experiences as a Black, queer creator – having grown up as a first-generation Haitian-American, graduated with a BA in Theater Studies from Yale University, toured as a jazz a cappella singer, worked as a firefighter and rescuer, conducted and published critical care and emergency medicine research, attended medical school, coached as a certified personal trainer, served as a Shakespeare teaching artist, worked in IT as a data and business analyst – and professionally acting on stage and screen. While varied, the through-line has always been a love for people and storytelling – and an always-present desire, evident in the rhythm and curiosity that exude from her voice, to discover, to share, and to connect with story and listener alike.

Reviews

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Quotes

"[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

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