posted on 09 Dec 2017

Here We Are: Notes for living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers

How can you possibly explain what it’s like to find yourself living on this extraordinary and complicated planet? How do you explain where we are in the massive knowable universe and, perhaps even more puzzling, how can you explain what it’s like to live with other people?

Well, it’s quite a task and one that Oliver Jeffers has taken on to try and help his new born son, Harland:

This book was written in the first two months of your life as I tried to make sense of it all for you. These are the things I think you need to know.

And it has to be said that he’s done something very special here. Walking a line between big, complex ideas and simple, understandable representations of those ideas is a real skill and I’m massively impressed by how Jeffers has done this more with illustration than with words.

Not that Jeffers uses elaborate or complicated drawings – quite the opposite. He reduces notions as complex as cosmology, ecology or biology down to easy-to-access drawings full of colour and animation.

Cunningly, he also manages to illustrate how complex language can be and how important it is to use it well. Take for example this disarmingly simple few words that capture something really complex and difficult:

On our planet, there are people.

One people is a person.

You are a person. You have a body.

Look after it, as most bits don’t grow back.

Jeffers is interested in the material world of bodies, other people and the flora and fauna but he doesn’t confine himself to the sensory or tactile world. He also introduces concepts such as slowness and relaxation as well as speedy hustle and bustle and he doesn’t hide the fact that the human condition isn’t perfect:

Though we have come a long way,

we haven’t quite worked everything out,

so there’s plenty left for you to do.

I also really like the way that the book ends on such a positive note – emphasising the value of family or community. The advice he leaves for his son can never be complete and so:

Now, if you need to know anything else….

…just ask.

I won’t be far away.

And when I’m not around…

you can always ask someone else.

This is a truly beautiful book in every sense of the word – both as a physical object and a spiritual aid. There is no child (or adult) who wouldn’t benefit from being given this book.

 

Terry Potter

December 2017