FArTHER

Product Information

Not only are the illustrations whimsical and creative and beautiful, the story is wonderfully touching', Myfavouritebooks.

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. Close inspection of the text and illustrations provides subtle links to World War One and ancient Greece, in particular the story of Icarus, as well as strong links to the DT curriculum. A young boy, bewitched by his father's unrelenting passion to fly; a desperate craving that absorbs his every waking minute, finds himself entranced by the dream.The story and illustrations work intricately together to produce an emotionally moving book which had me close to tears.

Does the book contain anything that teachers would wish to know about before recommending in class (strong language, sensitive topics etc. 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. Much later, the boy, now a young man finds himself drawn once more to his father's drawings and failed experiments.

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+. The style of illustration in this book, a mix of artwork, photographs in a collage come together to create a most unusual picture book which explores the relationship between father and son in a particularly poetic and elegant way' ― Librarymice. 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. 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.