Henriette (Etty) Darwin, was Charles Darwin's third child. Her two older siblings died at a young age. Etty, although a sickly child, lived to be 84. When she grew up she edited some of her famous father's work and was her mother's biographer.
The family home had a sand path that Darwin like to walk on and think. Often his children accompanied him on his rounds. This book imagines such a meander with Etta.
First they set out flint rocks to determine how many laps around the garden they will take. On this excursion, they decide upon four. As the two of them amble along, Etta asks her father questions. She is especially interested in whether or not fairies are real. Even when she doesn't like his answers, Etta always appreciates that her father never treats her questions as childish or silly.
They discuss evidence, the need to look closely and not be mistaken by what you see. He shows her how to look for the evidence living things leave behind.
Darwin might be modeling how to think scientifically, but at the same time, Etta has a few things to teach him.
Lauren Soly shows us such tenderness in this authentic relationship between father and daughter. Darwin did dote on his children, and this book is chock full of the loveliness of it.
Soloy's art is created through ink, paint and collage. Lush gardens are the backdrop for graphic novel characters conversing with each other in speech bubbles.
I appreciated the note at the end with additional information about Darwin and Etty.
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