1. Book design
2. Collage
3. Domestic life
4. Family
5. History
6. Home
7. Literary techniques
8. Paper sculpture
9. Rural life
10. Social life and customs
11. Stories in rhyme
12. Time
13. Visual literacy

‘Farmhouse’ is the story of a house, but it is much more than that. It traces the lives of a family of twelve as the children grow up in the country some generations ago. The house is real and our creator gives us detailed images of the family eating, playing and creating mischief as they grow up, then leave home. The house feels alive yet lonely when the humans have gone and animals have moved in. Life feels like a long continuous journey perfectly reflected in this story’s sole rhythmic and rhyming sentence.

At the story’s conclusion, Sophie explains how she created the story. ‘The pictures in this book are made of layers. I began with the reverse side of a roll of wallpaper and added floors and walls and furniture, made from scraps and fragments I found in the house. Most of the first layers are invisible now, hidden beneath embellishments and details, in the way that stories become layered as they get told and retold over the years.’ The jacket cover reveals this house’s early life while underneath the book jacket are interior shots showing family activities, and finally the endpapers offer more details. The interior illustrations showcase materials from this derelict nineteenth-century farmhouse in upstate New York. Wallpaper, composition books, newspapers, brown-paper bags, clothing, handkerchiefs, curtains and string are all included. These illustrations were created using Chinese ink, watercolour, gouache, and coloured pencil.

We watch as family members grow up and leave home. When the youngest child, now elderly, leaves home, the house falls into disrepair. A racoon sits upon the stove, a tree grows through the floor, and a bear snoozes under the house. Sophie Blackall discovered this house on her property and responded to its ‘story’. Houses have stories to tell, and Sophie Blackwell encourages us all to collect and enjoy these.

1. The Yarn podcast #168 ‘Sophie Blackall – FARMHOUSE Unravelled’, 2022, 23 minutes. Note Sophie Blackwell’s talk begins at 1 min 19 sec https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/168-sophie-blackall-farmhouse-unraveled/id1028877816?i=1000570384475
2. Better Reading Teachers Resource by Robyn Sheahan-Bright for ‘Farmhouse’ by Sophie Blackall https://www.betterreading.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/9780734421654-teachers-resources.pdf
3. School Library Journal review by Betsy Bird of Sophie Blackall’s ‘The Farmhouse’, 3 June 2022 https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/06/03/review-of-the-day-farmhouse-by-sophie-blackall/
4. Booklist review by Sharah Hunter of Sophie Blackall’s ‘The Farmhouse’ https://www.booklistonline.com/Farmhouse-Blackall-Sophie/pid=9765185?_zs=cQchW1&_zl=ILeX8
5. ‘Behind the Page: Sophie Blackall presents FARMHOUSE’ in this YouTube. Sophie Blackhall talks about her inspiration for this book and demonstrates her illustration technique, 12 Jul 2022 https://www.kidlithq.com/videos/behind-the-page-sophie-blackall-presents-farmhouse/
6. Kirkus review of Sophie Blackall’s ‘Farmhouse’, 13 Sept 2022 https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/sophie-blackall/farmhouse/
7. KnowItAll South Carolina ETV, ‘Sophie Blackall – Illustrating Children’s Books l Storyfest’, 15 minute video featuring Sophie Blackall talking about her work in different books https://www.knowitall.org/video/sophie-blackall-illustrating-childrens-books-storyfest
8. Publishers Weekly, Antonia Saxon interviews Sophie Blackall about her book, ‘Farmhouse’, 8 Sept 2022 https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/90266-q-a-with-sophie-blackall.html