FArTHER

by Grahame Baker-Smith

My Father's house was safe and rooted in the rock But inside he dreamed of air and flight ...
Step into an incredible world, where dreams that are passed from father to son make anything possible.

Genres: Picture Books, Family, War, Childrens, Death, International, British Literature

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2011

About the author

Grahame Baker-Smith, a self-taught illustrator, was inspired to create this book after his experiences of being a son and now having a son of his own. His first title for Templar Books, Leon and the Place Between, was short-listed for the Kate Greenaway Medal, and FArTHER went on to win in 2011. Grahame Baker-Smith lives in Bath, England, with his wife and three children.

Reviews

[Tom Bochnak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy cow. I'm struggling to find the right words to describe this book. First off, I have a lot of misconceptions about children's literature. I usually think of it as simple text with simple themes. However, this book is really complex for a picture book. The father is far from perfect and gets swept up in his dreams, and even forgets about his son at times. The book also deals with missing fathers or death; it's not quite clear what happens to the father. The book also deals with how the son copes with his missing father.

In the classroom, I would not use this book with kindergartners or first grade, but 2nd grade might be an acceptable age. The text is easy to read and the images bring the story to life, but the themes are way too complex for a young child to understand without some questioning. I think this is a great discussion piece if you want some higher level questioning in your classroom.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is quite complicated for a picture book and so would be best for KS2 as it's quite difficult to follow and the story and meaning is open to interpretation. The characters' father dreams of flying but he never manages to accomplish this wish. He then goes off to war but never returns, and here there are links with poppies as a symbolism of war. What happens to his father is never clarified; whether he died or was lost is unclear, but his son and in the end his grandson follow his dream. The illustrations are very effective, they're a more graphic-like design and they are very eye catching. There would have to be lots of talk used in the classroom and some drama activities such as hot seating to share thoughts and ideas on the story and to develop understanding.

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a thought provoking and powerful book! The story is beautifully written and some of the images are astonishing! It takes a few reads to appreciate how deep and complex the message is, and has lead to a great discussion about the meaning of the text (and we're adults). It definitely challenges the conception that childrens books are simple. The book covers the ideas of dreams, families, neglect, war, ptsd, alzheimers (depending on interpretation).

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more than I did. It felt like it was trying too hard to be a high-concept picture book, and while some of the illustrations were gorgeous, others freaked me out.

[Gemma Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book tells the story of a father and son and a dream to fly. The father is possessed with an unrelenting desire to fly which he never achieves. When the father goes off to war and doesn’t return, the dream of flying passes on to his son.

This is a picture book for children of ages 8 and upwards. Although it doesn’t contain a lot of text, the words are beautifully woven into the pictures using different fonts and text sizes. The pictures themselves are intricate and detailed images put together in a unique way using photographs and illustration which in themselves tell a story. I found myself asking questions about the images and even making up a little more of the story in my head.

I would recommend this book for year 4 literacy classes and I would say it would be an excellent text to use in a creative writing class. Firstly I feel the images would generate interesting discussions in the class, around the characters’ emotions and feelings and also encouraging the students to use their imaginations when looking at the images. It could be used as a starting point for pieces of writing, either following on the story or by taking an image and creating a different story.

[Ellie L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a thought provoking and complex story that I found needed several reads to unpick. The story follows a father with a dream of flying, who is so absorbed in this dream that it becomes obsession. This ambition is left underachieved and passes on to his son. The story is rich with the concept of duty, with the literal sense of going to war, the need for the son to fulfill what his father had started, and the duty to further this dream during following generations. Some interesting discussion could take place about the nature of dreams- does the son continue his father's work out of sadness after his father’s death, or is the dream just so compelling that it cannot be left unfulfilled?
.

[Beth Pollard · Rating 4 out of 5]

What first drew me to this book was the title - I immediately wondered why the illustration on the front cover depicted a father, yet the spelling clearly suggested something more. After reading the book I felt that the word 'farther' was perhaps used to mirror the father's desire to escape and be free, as well as the fact that he actually does leave when he goes to war. The unique illustrations have an almost eerie feel to them, which adds to the intrigue and questions that the story raises - for example, as I read the book I kept wondering why the father wanted to have wings, and what was driving his desire to fly away.

[Alice Maton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful. It was a few weeks since I read this and forgot to write a review but the story has resonated with me and I can still remember it. A young boy watches his father get so involved with his work, trying to make an invention to fly, that time spent with him is limited. This is even more so when he is sent to war and sadly dies. The boy feels the need to carry on with his father's invention and finally creates a way to fly. It is a high quality picture book where the illustrations say so much more than the words and can be a great source of discussion and inference with deep themes intertwined.

[RhiannaH · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply beautiful. The story and illustrations work intricately together to produce an emotionally moving book which had me close to tears. There are many different tangents that can be picked up from the story and explored more closely. Additionally, looking at the book as a whole story is powerful in itself. Would highly recommend this book.

[Lydia Duncalfe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This book blew me away. The stunning illustrations use a mixture of mediums which show originality and promote curiosity. The story is open for interpretation because of its unusual content, however more common themes arise such as family, loss and ambition, which people may relate to.

[James Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really simple book, but with a deep message about dreams and how they can get in the way of life. Great book to use as a teacher as there is so much to explore.

[Gabriella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb illustrations they truly take centre stage of the book with the story written around it. I like how some of the illustrations are framed to show the difference of time or activities. I think the although the illustrations are beautiful I think the plot is quite sad and sombre. I think the use of colour on some pages are quite poignant such as when he goes off to war all colours are quite dark and bleak but the poppies are bright red. However, the story does eventually have a happy ending with the dream of flying coming true. I would highly recommend this book to children I think they would find it quite fascinating with so much to look at within the illustrations

[Will Ainsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

FArTHER is the story of a father who dreams of flying. However, when he goes to war and does not return, his son attempts to finish where he left off and makes his dream come true. Winner of the 2012 Greenaway award, this truly is an inspirational story showing how any dream can be fulfilled with love and motivation.

The first thing I will comment on are the illustrations. They are incredible. Using photographic collage and illustration, this is the first book that Grahame has both written and illustrated and the results are amazing. The illustrations really do bring this picture book to life and the size of the book make it perfect for reading to groups of children.

There are many themes that are brought up that also make this ideal for teachers to aid topics. Themes such as war, love, death and dreams could all be discussed as a class and the book deals with each of these very sensitively which justifies the recommended reading age of 5+. When the father goes to war we see he has left a trail of poppies in his wake. This illustration would be perfect for discussing with a class at the time of remembrance day and why it is we wear poppies in a very sensitive way. I would highly recommend this to anyone who has or works with children. It will stay with me for a very long time.

[Carl Waluconis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a gorgeously illustrated and exceptional children's book. Ir seems genuinely auto-biographical and explores the relationship between grandfather-father-son, and their dreams and hopes. Readable in ten minutes or less, it lingers with you later. The illustrations are haunting, a enticing mix of precision and fantasy. What does link the generations?

[Abi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A complex book that has several themes that would appear more prevalent the older or 'mature' the reader. A book about the complexities of fatherhood and dreams as well as alluding to death, loss and war. I particularly love the image of the Father leaving for war, whilst this is never explicitly said the son notes that 'another call claimed him. I will always remember the day he left, the clothes they gave hm, khaki against the scarlet poppies' and there is a powerful illustration to accompany the powerful mental image.

[Andy Verschoyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of wonder. Great cover picture - which is not in the story. The art is as poetic as the Writing. Will try to read this to a child - my intuition is that you could start with a child that cannot read, because the themes are real and joyous. And why not try older children and use it as a source for a discussion - about families, about dreams and growing up, about loss, about poetry, about art.

[Emily McKnight · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary/Personal Response:
This is a really adventurous book. It's unique and imaginative. I really like that this books pulls in a new theory of passes dreams back and forth and it makes for a beautifully articulated tale of a father and son. Some people enjoy the most impossible, and furthest from reality. A perfect book for lovers of those

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful, sad, hopeful, melancholic... I loved the illustrations. The story about a father with a dream that he never see's fulfilled. A sad goodbye. A hopeful resurrection of the dream and the successful fruition of it. And the final parting with a new child and the wonder of whether or not he will have the same dream and what he will do with it.

[Stanlee Uy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet story about a father, son and a dream. Great book for Guided Reading, you can apply choral reading into this. A lot of inferences e.g. World War, so, you can cross-curricular with History. Tons of imagery and personification for literacy writing. Overall, short sweet story with a lot of substance!

[Adrian Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great for KS2 Farther is the story of a young boys relationship with his father. His father is obsessed with the dream to fly. When his father goes off to war and doesn't return, the boy picks up the mantle and accomplishes his father's dream. A lot of this book is set to interpretation which can bring great conversational pieces for the class.

[Anna Cokrlic · Rating 3 out of 5]

FArTHER, by Grahame Baker-Smith is a story that highlights the relationship between a boy and his father. I like this story because it showed the adventures they went on together as well as how their relationship changes over time. I think this story is a good example of dealing with loss for young children.

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I’m confused about what the Kate Greenaway Medal is… I was under the impression that it was the UK equivalent of the Caldecott medal given in the US. I was not particularly impressed with the illustrations in this book. In fact, I found them a bit off-putting.

[Rajiny Rajan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Good

[Jenna Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just found this rather odd. It's beautiful but I felt as though I didn't 'get' it at all.

[Jenna Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read it before and my 2yo loved it so we had it for ages. An extra star for that fact. I found it a little odd to be honest.

[Zoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought provoking illustrations

[Ece · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Day and night, he sewed and stitched and sawed and hammered, and trimmed THE FEATHERS OF A THOUSAND HOPEFUL WINGS."

[Yorky Caz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the children's books that surprises me with its depth. It was so sad from the farther too engrossed in his obsession to leaving for war. The imagery is beautiful.

[ADakota · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated and written. So understated, so moving.

[Ben · Rating 1 out of 5]

Creepy art well complemented by a sad and depressing story.