Our Father Who Art in a Tree by Judy Pascoe

Our Father Who Art in a Tree

Judy Pascoe

The story is told by Simone, a ten year old whose father has died unexpectedly. The family deal with grief in different ways but resolve their struggle. A magical book with a streak of Australian pragmatism.

Extract
It was simple for me: the saints were in heaven, and the guardian angels had extendable wings like Batman, and my dad had died and gone to live in the tree in the back yard ....

The first time I heard him call was the evening after we'd been to the cemetery. I'd stood at his grave and watched the ants crawling across the dry earth, their pinhole nests perforated the red soil. It was too scary, I'd said to myself, meaning the ants.

'Don't worry about the ants.' That's what I heard him say.
I replied in my own mind. They're everywhere, why are there so many? Meaning, is that you I'm talking to?'
'They're busy,' he'd said. 'Yes, it's me.'

Parallels
  • Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris
  • Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier