Pop Into My Place: An Exploration of the Narrative and Physical Space in Jan Pien´kowski’s Haunted House

Discussions of children’s literature frequently neglect the pop-up. This universally popular type of book is often considered ephemeral and insubstantial, although some titles have managed to attain popularity and critical recognition, elevating the form to iconic status. One of the most acclaimed and lasting titles in contemporary pop-up books is Jan Pien´kowski’s Haunted House. Gothic themes have always been popular with pop-up book originators, especially as the form lends itself perfectly to concepts of transformation, but a close reading of this particular title is ideally suited to the investigation of place and space. Everything is carefully designed to draw the reader in. The familiar experience of arriving in a strange house is a concept even the youngest child can relate to, while the text poses questions and, even in its title, establishes the potential for surprise. Each turn of the page delivers this as each pop-up unfolds and demands reaction from the reader, linking narrative place and space with actual three dimensional place and space. Using Pien´kowski’s Haunted House as a focus, this article argues for a revaluation of the pop-up form.