WITH DAD, by Richard Jackson
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
Coming in May, 2024
Order from: Bookshop | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Ages 4 to 8
Neal Porter Books/Holiday House
A red Jeep on a dirt road, two sets of hands on the wheel; fresh-caught trout grilling over a fire; a night in a sleeping bag, the moon glowing outside the tent. Camping with his dad near Michigan’s Au Sable river, a young boy collects these indelible memories, and more.
Now war has called his father away, to drive a different kind of Jeep, and the memories are even more precious. One day soon, he hopes, Dad will come home, and they’ll be headed back into the woods, off to make memories again.
Acclaimed editor and author Richard Jackson drew from his own experience for this tender story about the lasting impact of quality time with a parent, especially poignant for military families. Caldecott Medalist and Sibert Honoree Brian Floca’s warm, lively illustrations pair perfectly with Jackson’s timeless words.
★ Booklist (starred review):
"Tim recalls every detail of the camping trip he took with his father last summer. Sitting on Dad’s lap with his hands beneath his father’s on the steering wheel, they drove along Michigan back roads to a campsite in the woods, where they pitched their tent and dug a firepit. Fly fishing in the river, Dad caught two trout and whooped with happiness when Tim caught one, too. Later, he showed his son how to gut a fish and then cooked it. That night, while trying to spot an owl by moonlight, Dad praised Tim’s skill as a driver and a fisherman. It’s winter now; Tim misses his father, who’s away in “a far-away war.” As he waits with his mother for Dad’s return, he recalls their camping trip. Jackson, a notable children’s book editor and author, surely wrote from the heart in this story, which expresses emotions clearly and without sentimentality. Floca’s expressive pen-and-ink drawings, brightened with watercolor and gouache paints, illustrate the narrative with sensitivity to its tone and attention to period details. Though the beautiful illustrations place the action in the mid-twentieth century, the story transcends its setting and, in some sense, it speaks for all children missing a parent who was called away for military service. A heartfelt, timeless picture book." — Carolyn Phelan
★ Kirkus Reviews (starred review):
"A child draws on memories of the past to pull strength for the present and future.
Tim and his father travel along the “upper South Branch / of the Au Sable River…in Michigan country” for a summertime camping trip. After driving over tough terrain to the campsite, they pitch a tent, dig a fire pit, and head to the river for a day of fishing. Dad teaches Tim important skills such as how to prepare his catch and properly cook it while the two gather by a nighttime campfire. When the hoot of an owl awakens them in the middle of the night, father and son further bond over the day’s events as they have a few laughs. The book ends on a wintry day, with Tim and his mother looking at pictures of his father. Dad is now fighting in an unnamed “far-away war,” but Tim’s memories of that day linger. By turns verbose and spare, the late Jackson’s text works well with Floca’s illustrations, which are rendered in a soft palette to showcase the natural world’s elegant beauty. Floca’s signature pen, ink, and watercolor art captures the spirit of memories, showing that they can be both immediate and cloudy. Young readers will readily relate to the universal experience of thinking about positive times when missing a loved one. Characters present white.
A powerful celebration of the parent-child bond and the moments that make an impact."
★ The Horn Book Magazine (starred review):
“In Michigan country on a two-rut road along a stream called the upper South Branch of the Au Sable River,” a young boy sits on his father’s lap in a red Jeep, two sets of hands on the steering wheel, as they head out on a camping trip. Set in the early 1950s and rooted in Jackson’s own boyhood memories, this homage to a moment in time is beautifully rendered and made specific in poetic text and brilliant illustrations of fly fishing, catching brown trout, cooking on an open fire, and trying to spot an owl. But that was last summer, and now winter has come to their Michigan town, a gray-blue world of snow-covered houses with yellow lights; the boy is on his mother’s lap, thinking of “Dad now as he drives another Jeep in a far-away war.” Floca’s stunning yet gentle illustrations in pen, ink, watercolor, and gouache were completed after Jackson’s death in 2019 and capture the varied greens of a summer day in the country, the shimmering light on a trout half in and half out of the water, and the eerie moon in a nighttime sky. The effective interplay of text and art makes this slender tale of reminiscence unforgettable. —Dean Schneider
Publishers Weekly:
"This story from the late Jackson (I See You See) begins as a red Jeep carrying two pale-skinned figures trundles over “a two-rut road along a stream called the upper South Branch of the Au Sable River.” In gently tinted pen and ink, watercolor, and gouache spreads, Caldecott Medalist Floca follows a son who sits on his father’s lap to steer the vehicle, then the two as they put up an olive-drab tent at a campsite, then go fishing. “An owl might come for those tonight,” says the father as he pitches trout innards into the scrub. Later, sleeping in the tent, the father wakes the son: “Listen, Tim. Was that our owl?” A full moon illuminates the campsite; there’s no owl, but the feeling of magic lingers. Closely observed writing brings sensations to life: “It was so amazing to see a wriggler wriggling on my own line and to hear Dad whooping with happiness.” In a coda, the boy is shown looking wistfully into the distance after reading an airmail letter from his father, now stationed overseas: “I want Dad home safe and soon and warm.” The child’s longing testifies to the wonder of his parent’s presence, which offers both excitement and security."
The Wall Street Journal:
"In honor of Father’s Day, here are four books that show dads at their admirable best…. Richard Jackson draws on memories of a boyhood fishing trip for a touching and atmospheric picture book, “With Dad,” illustrated by Brian Floca.… The trip is a joy and a success—father and son sit wrapped in a blanket by the fire and watch for owls by moonlight—but then comes a poignant turn. Months later, the father has been called for military service. The boy sits with his mother and a heap of airmail letters, thinking of “Dad now as he drives another Jeep in a far-away war.” Readers ages 4-8 will be relieved when the momentary sadness shifts to reassurance and hope." Full review here.