When Will My Big Brother Come Home? A Picture-Book Portrait of a Family and Military Service

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Little Luis cannot understand why his adored big brother Nico wants to leave for the army. In Luis Paints the World (2016) Terry Farish portrays a story that is seldom addressed in books for young children: brothers, sisters, mothers, and fathers leaving for military service. It is a story that plays out again and again across our country, very frequently in minority families, and the reasons are often abstract ideas that are difficult for children.  Full article in Booklist Reader.

“In a bustling Dominican neighborhood in Massachusetts, young Luis wishes his brother Nico weren’t leaving for the army to see the world. He paints a mural in an attempt to keep his brother home, to no avail. As Nico sends pictures home, Luis’s world—as well as his mural—expands. The boldly colored illustrations have a dreamy, surrealistic quality.”  School Library Journal

“Its beautiful message will touch the hearts of readers and maybe inspire them to create art of their own.”  ALA-Booklist

“…a beautiful story about family, expression, and community.”  North Andover Eagle Tribune   Feature story photos and text here 

“With song and paint brushes, a family and also a community wait for that most wonderful moment, when a soldier, someone’s brother or sister, daughter, husband, wife, or son, returns to the world of home.   LUIS PAINTS THE WORLD is a beautiful book.”    ReaderKidz

A WOW  “World of Words” Recommended Book  from the University of Arizona

CCBC Choices 2017 , The Children’s Cooperative Book Center

A National Council of Teachers of English Charlotte Huck Recommended Book

A Best Book of the Year from the Bank Street College of Education

* Stared Review as a Book of Outstanding Merit