Faraway Home (Hardcover)

by Jane Kurtz (Author), E. B. Lewis (Illustrator) "WHEN DESTA dances into her house after school, the first thing she sees is the green envelope..." (more)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Lewis's (previously paired with Kurtz for Fire on the Mountain) luminous watercolors light up this warm tale of family ties and the tug of homelands left behind. When Desta's father receives word that his mother is ill, he determines to return to his native Ethiopia to visit her. He tells American-born Desta of Ethiopia's beauty, but she hears only the differences-dinners cooked in a firepit, a night wind that is often "cold as old bones" and that carries with it the howling of hyenas. "Your home is too wild," she tells him. Besides, she worries that he might not come back. Kurtz cuts right to the heart of a common childhood concern, giving the angst of separation a fresh twist with the exotic African destination. And in soaringly lyrical language, she paints a word picture of the Ethiopia where she herself grew up, a place where "shepherds pipe songs of longing in the hills, and thousands of flamingos flap in a pink cloud over the Great Rift Valley lakes." Lewis's brush is deft: in a series of tender character portraits he reveals the affectionate bond between Desta and her father, and he illuminates the contrast between the two cultures through his graceful landscapes. A haunting blend of the familiar and foreign. Ages 6-9. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-Desta's grandmother is ill in faraway Ethiopia, and her father must return to his native land to help out. As he cuddles his daughter on his lap, he describes the place of his birth. The child pairs his experiences with hers and wonders whether the cowbells he remembers sound like the wind chime on their front porch. The man's love and yearning for home is obvious, and the little girl worries that he may never return to her. Finally reassured that he will come back, she asks him so many questions about his childhood home that when he sings in his native tongue, she begins to see "-a pink cloud of flamingos rippling up from a dark blue lake-." Lewis captures the lyricism and rich imagery of the text with his evocative, realistic watercolors. Soft browns, blues, greens, and pinks predominate in paintings that flow to the edge of pages for scenes set here, and fade off into white for those set in the Ethiopia of memory and longing. Text and illustrations combine to immerse readers in the sights and sounds of the African homeland, and the beautifully crafted whole gives fresh meaning to the terms "family," "separation," and "home."-Diane S. Marton, Arlington County Library, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Gulliver Books (March 6, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152000364
• ISBN-13: 978-0152000363
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #591,777 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Child's Fears of Loss Are Eased, July 8, 2000

By A Customer

In this beautifully illustrated story, a young girl comes to terms with her immigrant father's plans to visit his country of birth, Ethiopia. In the process, she learns about the differences and similarities between his childhood and hers and, more importantly, about the enduring strength of the love between parent and child. This wonderful book is perfect to share with the child facing similar fears about whether a parent will return from a journey to a distant place or the child perturbed by immigrant parents' longings for an unknown and strange land. For every parent and child, it is a great introduction to a family discussion of "when I was your age, we ..." Highly recommended.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good book for Immigrants and those working with them., December 31, 2001

By A Customer

It must be really strange for a child of immigrants to understand what their parents are feeling about their other country and culture. Some may or may not understand their parents first language. I am eager to share this book with my students and see what they think.

5.0 out of 5 stars Faraway Home, November 20, 2000

A Kid's Review

Faraway Home is the story of a young girl whose father must go away to his home land to see his mother. The girl (Desta) isn't very happy about this. The illustrations (by E. B. Lewis) are simply stunning. This is a truly spectacular book