Leave Taking

by Lorraine Marwood, Peter Carnavas (Illustrator)

Leave taking noun the act of saying goodbye. What if you had just one week left to say goodbye to everything you've ever known? Toby and his mum and dad are leaving their family farm after the death of Toby's younger sister, Leah. Together, they sort through all their belongings and put things aside to sell or throw out. It's a big task, and Toby doesn't want to leave the only place he's called home. As his last day on the farm approaches, Toby has a plan - a plan to say goodbye to all the things and places that mean something special to him and Leah, from the machinery shed to Pa's old truck to the chook house. With the help of his best friend, Trigger the dog, he learns what it means to take your leave.

Genres: Childrens

85 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 27, 2018

Reviews

[Pauline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this style of free verse poetry novel for this age group and this has to be one of the best. Lorraine Marwood has encapsulated in a very short space the whole gamut of emotions that come with the death of a loved one, saying goodbye, packing up and leaving a home. Toby’s little sister Leah has died and his family are moving away from their farm that has been owned by their family for two generations. They are moving to a smaller farm, there is a new baby on the way and they are hoping to make some new memories. Toby has a map and a plan to go around to all the significant spots on the farm to say goodbye and the story follows his journey around the farm. Through Toby’s plan and memories we really get to see what sort of person Leah was like and how much her family loved her. The simple line drawings by Peter Carnavas help to bring the words to life and flesh out the characters and the farm. Children who live on farms will relate to the daily chores and routines of farm life and for city kids, it will introduce them to the many tasks involved in running a farm. At the heart of this though it is a story of keeping memories and love alive in your heart. Warning: read this book with tissues at hand.

[Dimity Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marwood is more than adept at distilling emotions into moving verse novels. Attaching emotion and memories to physical things is something humans are adept at, as well. This story deftly portrays a young boys heart-felt attempt to retain and simultaneously farewell everything in his life he holds dear as he and his family prepare to sell up and leave their family farm. Most wrenching of all is the fact that every spider-webbed shed, every blade of grass, every shade of sunset is inextricably linked with the times he shared with his baby sister, Leah, a sister who is no longer in their lives. Toby worries that by taking leave of the farm, his childhood home, he will also be leaving Leah behind forever.

Touching, tender, and occasionally, tearful, as goodbyes often are, Leave Taking is nevertheless an immensely uplifting tale with strong references to family, grief, handling loss, letting go and ultimately getting on with life.

[Barbara Kennard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought this book was great. Gentle, loving, wise, realistic. And I agree with being recommended for years 5-7 at school.

[Kerryn Lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

When the dedication pages states ‘To all those who’ve touched by cancer, take heart’ you know there’s a strong chance you’re going to need tissues. Toby and his family are leaving the family farm after his younger sister died from cancer. How do you say goodbye to a lifetime of memories and if you leave the one place tied to the memories of someone you’ve lost do you risk losing those memories too. Tender and gentle, this beautiful story shows how young Toby says his goodbyes to the one home he’s known and to those very special memories of his sister and how we can live without those we’ve lost.

[AD · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a moving story, I had tears in my eyes as I read it. Toby's younger sister has died of cancer, and his parents have decided to sell their farm and move to help deal with their grief. Toby spends time visiting all the special places on the farm to say goodbye, as he processes his grief in his own way. The language is gentle, sparse, and poignant. Toby's attachment to the land he has grown up on shows another side of his sensitive and thoughtful nature. A truly wonderful book, I highly recommend to readers from about Year 4 and up.

[Anna Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful Australian verse novel about grief; the grief of losing a sibling to cancer and the grief of saying goodbye to your home. A simple storyline of a boy travelling around his farm, camping at different spots to say goodbye. This would be a lovely story for mature middle primary students to read and discuss as a group.

[Bec · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brought this for school as it was on the CBCA shortlist for 2019 and i can understand why. Beautiful written in verse but should come with a warning - you may need tissues.
Even if you are not into traditional poetry this book is every easy to read (took me less than 1 hour)

[Debbie Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful! A gentle tale of family loss and saying goodbye. Goodbyes herald new beginnings for a family coming to terms with the loss of a child.

[Kerry McCaffery · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever story dealing with grief and loss - family and memories. This is tipped to win its category in the CBCA awards this year. Written in stanzas, this is a quick but enjoyable read.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful, gentle story exploring the grief a young child feels having lost his sister and the impending move from his family home. I had tears well up on a number of occasions.

[Jennie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Toby and his family are selling the farm and moving on as that come to terms with the death of Toby's younger sister Leah. Toby maps and visits his favourite places on the farm to recall and reflect the important memories.
The end papers include a pictorial (child like) representation of the farm and places visited, with the back map labelled.
The text is set out as if written as free verse but reads as sentences. Larger font and occasional sketches suit younger independent primary readers.
A gentle story of coming to terms with loss. Shortlisted for the 2019 CBCA book of the Year: Younger Readers.

[Lynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful writing, in verse novel form, is a wonderful example of handling a very difficult topic with light and shade.
Toby's family has lost his younger sister Leah to cancer. As a result they’re leaving their family farm to create new memories on another farm elsewhere. There is lots of grief and lots of leave taking, but also lots of courage and optimism and love.
It’s clear that Marwood writes with the hope of illuminating the path of grief. It’s a rocky road but it’s possible to take new life out of tragedy, and young Toby shows us that.
Kids who enjoy this book might also enjoy the verse novels of Steven Herrick & Sharon Creech.

[Sharlene Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the way this story is written ... like a poem of thoughts and feelings from a young boy finding his way through the grief of losing his sister to cancer and finding his own way to say goodbye, not to her but to a family home and all the special places memories have been stored over the generations that his family lived there. ❤️

[Monica Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice novel in verse for younger readers.

[Kylie Purdie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book in the Australian Children's Book Council 2019 shortlist for Younger Readers.

This is a lovely little book about saying goodbye to place. Toby's family is leaving the farm he has grown up on. Not only are they leaving the farm, they are also leaving the place his sister died. Among the daily chores that have to happen on a farm, Toby takes a tour of the important places on the farm to say goodbye.

Written in verse, this book manages to explore the importance of place, family, love and loss in a tender and sensitive manner.