Replete with color and texture, this beautiful picture book celebrates the joy of a child's visit to the farm and her playful interaction with animals and nature.
This breathtaking picture book captures the innocence and joy of a child’s experiences at the farm. Whimsical illustrations come alive with color and texture to compliment the gentle, rhythmic text. From the lamb’s nuzzle to the cow’s morning greeting, from the horse’s velvety nose to the ducklings’ playful quacks, the barnyard is brimming with possibilities to explore.
Extras:Curriculum Links for When I Visit the FarmMark from Just One More Book! visits the Central Experimental Farm with author and illustrator, Cyrstal Beshara. Click here to listen to the interview.
“Told with simple, spare sentences, the delightful story engages the reader in the fun exploration and quiet meditation of nature, all from within the safe environs of the farm … the rich and playful illustrations draw us into the story until we’re certain we ourselves can reach out and 'touch a nose as soft as velvet' ... Just as the book begins with dandelion seeds floating away so it also ends – but with a final engaging question as to the nature of the reader’s own dream, as to what may make him or her 'feel as free as a dandelion seed.' Rated E for Excellent.” – Resource Links, June 2009
"... Beshara’s softly coloured illustrations sometimes have the effect of a photograph – more real than reality itself – thanks to careful choices and evocative detail. The scene of a little girl standing on a fence, soft green grass below her feet and a barn in the distance, is so perfectly composed as to seem inevitable ... with such breathtaking art to support [the storyline], we come to appreciate the simplicity and sincerity of the words ... a very absorbing read, and will be especially interesting to urbanized young Canadians." – Quill & Quire, featured review, April 2009
"... a beautiful picture book with warm, sunny illustrations." – CM: Canadian Review of Materials, March 2009
“... gracefully executed in fresh pastels ... The unnamed protagonist is only ever partially depicted (as a pair of hands reaching out to strike a muzzle, as bare feet stretched out in a grass field), inviting young readers to complete the pictures with stories of their own imagination. This is a world devoid of adults, bathed in summer sunshine.” – Montreal Review of Books, Spring 2009
“... a very short book. Only 154 words, to be exact. Yet those few words paired with Beshara’s powerful nature drawings, conjures up the biggest slice of nostalgia you ever saw … This is a quiet book with a Norman-Rockwell feel. It is perfect for your child’s lap time or nap time, and is sure to conjure up feelings of nostalgia and “yester-year” in your own grown-up heart.” – yabookscentral.com, July 2009
“Children's glee over first-time experiences is infectious, whether it’s the satiny feel of grass on their bare toes or the warmth coming from a horse breathing on their outstretched hands. Ottawa writer and illustrator Crystal Beshara captures such moments in this book ... Youngsters will enjoy finding a Jersey cow, goslings, chicks, a chipmunk, robin’s eggs and the old hen,who has a dream of her own.” – The Record, May 2009
"The cover is just adorable ... The text seems to have a sense of poetry about it." – The Reading Tub, April 2009
“...
a quiet, lyrical adventure that would make a cozy one-on-one share
with a child.” – Children's Literature, May 2009
