This was a really informative look at houseless people and how they are affected by policies and stigmatization. A great book for teenagers, older children and adults. Too often we treat unhoused people as pariahs and they deserve better. This was a really kind book.

A great primer about homelessness, but probably best as part of several books about the topic. Presents things respectfully and factually, though the layout of the book is sometimes not great.

This is a solid informative read. It should come as no surprise that there is an agenda to the text, but it's an agenda most of us should be able to get behind. Peterson wants the reader to empathize, to view the unhoused as people rather than statistics. We explore the social and economic causes of homelessness, presented in clear and concise ways. It's presented as more cut and dry than I suspect the reality would reflect (sociology being rather "squishy" in my mind). Even so, I feel like it properly achieves it's end - helping young readers view the unhoused as complex people deserving of understanding and dignity.

This book was a real eye-opener and very educational. I think this is a great opening for a discussion with young people about homelessness. I think Peterson does a good job discussing this topic objectively, without being judgmental or discussing homelessness in a negative way. I would highly recommend this book. Peterson also lists all their sources and some great resources at the end of the book.

4.5/5 Stars

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Shelter in exchange for an honest review.

Shelter is an easily consumable yet informative read on Homelessness. I think it can serve as a good primary introduction into homelessness for adults looking to start getting informed (aka me), and the use of a lot of pictures to break up text also makes it consumable for a younger audience.

This is the type of book you pick up and know that the person behind it had a fire in their heart driving them to write this.
As I was reading this more then once I thought of people I wanted to slam this book down in front of, and be like here read this, and maybe you might stop acting like such a terrible person.

While this book is primarily about Homelessness, it covers so much more and does an awesome job and destroying the assumptions that are often held.

I was excited about this resource but found that it did not address the intersection with race very clearly or very well. Found the use of pictures of people sleeping on benches and on streets to be inappropriate, when it could be better illustrated. Does a good job with introductory terms and background causes, but not something that I would probably grab as a first resource for teaching kids about homelessness.

Nicely formatted overview of homelessness in Canada and the US, from a woman who has worked in various capacities with this community. Mix of photographs and drawings, a glossary, and a bibliography of further reading make this accessible to middle grade readers.

Shelter is a very informative non-fiction picture book. As an adult I found this informative and a great tool for education. My only qualm is that I don't know if it would hold the target demographic's attention. Regardless, teachers need this in classrooms!

Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review

Shelter is a unique take on documenting what it means to be unhoused. It is a comprehensive look at the humanity of people in need of shelter and asks the reader to use empathy and perspective-taking while reading. It would be an excellent addition to a classroom library or discussion as a way to introduce a challenging topic and make a case for taking action.