Visiting you - a journey of love by Rebecka Sharpe Shelberg and Andrea Edmonds

EK Books, 2018. ISBN 9781925335668
There are many ways to visit Hope Meadows. But whether you go by train, bus, tram or ferry, there is always someone sharing the journey with you. And whether that is a scruffy, gruff man who is so tall he can touch the roof without stretching who lives apart from his daughter; a gruff and grouchy old man with hair like white fairy floss and a big round nose whose wife has died; a grouchy and cross girl with hair as black as night and ring through her nose whose grandfather no longer remembers her; or a woman as big as a bear with tattoos down her arms whose son may not recover from a motorcycle accident; each has the same purpose and a similar story to tell - the loss of someone they loved dearly, whom they miss terribly and who brought joy and love to their lives. Each of them love and miss their family member just as much as the little girl loves and misses her dad, and while his journey has reached its final destination, this love continues and brings joy.
Undeterred by outward appearances, the little girl asks each the same question - Who are you visiting? - and in return discovers that love is what binds us together regardless of how we present ourselves to the world. Rather than focusing on physical differences, it is the common humanity of the community and the need to give and receive love that binds us. This commonality is echoed through the repetitive style of the text and illustrations which feature a pathway of love that connects the memories of each person.
This focus on our similarities rather than our differences is a familiar theme of many stories for children, but Visiting You stands out as it looks beneath the surface to our emotions and helps us understand that really, all you need is love. That will carry you through the most trying situations. It offers an opportunity for the reader to reflect on those whom they love and the memories they would share if something were to happen to that person, perhaps even create a class journey of love so they can be reassured that there is someone in their life who loves them as much as they love in return.
Barbara Braxton