Ladybug Nominee

Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall (Little, Brown and Company, 2022)

Over a hill, at the end of a road, by a glittering stream that twists and turns stands a farmhouse.

Step inside the dollhouse-like interior of  Farmhouse  and relish in the daily life of the family that lives there, rendered in impeccable, thrilling detail. Based on a real family and an actual farmhouse where Sophie salvaged facts and artifacts for the making of this spectacular work, page after page bursts with luminous detail and joy. Join the award-winning, best-selling Sophie Blackall as she takes readers on an enchanting visit to a farmhouse across time, to a place that echoes with stories.

About Sophie Blackall

Sophie Blackall is an award-winning illustrator of over 50 books for children, including the g Ivy and Bean series, She is a four-time recipient of The New York Times Best Illustrated Picture Book Award and has worked with UNICEF and Save the Children, UK on global health and literacy initiatives. Originally from Australia, she now splits her time between Brooklyn, New York, and the Catskill Mountains, where she is building a retreat for the children’s book community called Milkwood Farm. Her website is https://www.sophieblackall.com/

Activities & Links

• Read a tribute to this book at https://www.themarginalian.org/2022/11/29/farmhouse-sophie-blackall/ 
•  Watch an introduction to the book by the author at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5OSHXIm3Lk
• Check out this interview with Sophie Blackall by Ann Patchett (author, and owner of Parnassus Books) https://parnassusmusing.net/2022/08/24/sophie-blackall/
• This book review includes several ideas for related activities: https://gifteddevelopment.org/musings/thewestinggame-42jlm
  
• Activities based on this book from Little Learners Hub: https://littlelearnerhub.com/2023/06/01/teaching-and-learning-activities-for-farmhouse-by-sophie-blackall/
• Read about developing collage skills (like the layers used in this book's illustrations) at https://artsandbricks.com/magazine-collage-ideas-for-kids/
  

Suggestions for Further Reading

• This review from School Library Journal includes a lot of suggestions for other house-related books: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/06/03/review-of-the-day-farmhouse-by-sophie-blackall/
  
• For more books about houses check out the previous Ladybug Longlist titles  at https://nhbookcenter.blogspot.com/2022/02/ladybug-longlist-houses.html and at https://nhbookcenter.blogspot.com/2023/02/ladybug-longlist-home.html
  
• If you want more books from Sophie Blackall consider If You Come to Earth, a 2021 Ladybug nominee or Hello Lighthouse, which won the 2019 Caldecott Medal.

 

This is one of ten titles nominated for the 2023 Ladybug Picture Book Award.

We will be posting information about a different nominee each Friday throughout the summer and will issue a pdf voters guide featuring all ten titles at Labor Day.