Away

Written by Emil Sher

Illustrated by Qin Leng

Groundwood Books

978-1-55498-483-1

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

April 2017

There’s a looming red circle on the calendar and a family that knows that date is coming.  No one ever says but it’s evident from “discussions” a mother and child are having via sticky notes that it’s all about going away to camp for the first time. 

From Away 

by Emil Sher

illus. by Qin Leng

Though Mom is upbeat about having one last movie night, and buying bug spray and packing, her daughter is less so.  The child tells her mom she’s only borrowing the sleeping bag for one night; that Lester the cat would miss her; and that evidence from her grandmother suggests her mother's own childhood camp experience was traumatic.  Of course, her mother remembers it quite differently.

From Away 

by Emil Sher 

illus. by Qin Leng

Of course, as with many things, it’s the anticipation of the unknown that is worse than anything for the child.  Thankfully, a final series of notes on larger paper (this will undoubtedly be her letter home) about her camp experience indicate a charming reversal of attitude.

From Away 

by Emil Sher 

illus. by Qin Leng

Emil Sher's story about a young girl heading to camp for the first time is more about family and communication than it is about the camp experience.  The family's busy lifestyle requires them to communicate so much through their sticky notes but this does not affect their relationships but rather guide them in their activities, like a visit to the laundromat that includes math drill, and ensures connection even when apart.  Perhaps the child's reluctance is also associated with the fear that this connection could be lost with distance and time. Fortunately, Qin Leng's pencil and watercolour illustrations provide the softness of touch and brightness of affection needed to allay any family's trepidation about summer camp and reassure everyone–mother, child, cat, grandmother–that it's just like any other day (or week or two) but within a new location and some secondary characters.

Undoubtedly there will be many children who are already anticipating their own summer experience "away" and Emil Sher and Qin Leng have provided a wonderful literary grounding tool in Away that could help most overcome the worries about the unknown. The caring and affection are obvious in the notes and illustrations and will help push any child or adult from worry to acceptance and finally appreciation.