Edmond Went Far Away

ISBN 0152251057 - I'm surprised to find no reviews on this book, because it's excellent - I assumed I'd stumbled late upon a gem the rest of the world knew about. I was wrong, so let me be the first to tell you, you're really missing out on a great book. Edmond lives on a farm. There is a pond and a grove of trees, the farthest Edmond's ever been, until today. Today, Edmond has decided to go far away. Along the way, he stops to tell the animals he sees every day that he is going far away and off he goes. To the grove, then through the grove and up a hill. From the top of the hill, he can see a whole new world. He explores, and is joined by his father, who spends the night with him in his newly discovered world before returning in the morning to tell the animals that he has been far away... and has come home. Through the beginning of the book, Edmond chatters with the animals who chatter back, but once he's passed into territory he's never been in before, he stops talking. Even when his father joins him, neither of them says anything. It's an impressive sort of silence that the reader can't help but notice and it's not uncomfortable, it's just right. Edmond's momentary fear when he's gone over the hill and can no longer see any part of the world he knows is superb, especially since that's the moment his father appears. And Edmond's triumphant return home is really well done, as his father fades back into the background and Edmond notes what has, and has not, changed in his absence. Martin Bax has written a superb children's story, short enough for young readers and although it's much shorter than a "chapter book", it has chapters. Michael Foreman's watercolor illustrations are spot on - just check out the detail when Edmond surveys the lake! 5 stars are almost not enough!!