My Tattooed Dad

A young boy describes what life is like when his dad comes home ? how he fries up chicken samosas for dinner, how he makes jokes and fools around, and how he carries him off to bed when he is sleepy. His dad also tells wonderful stories of his adventures in far-off lands, often inspired by his many, many exotic tattoos. His letters to his son are also full of great stories about the past ? what the first date with his mother was like (it included a visit to a fortune teller and a bizarre circus) and about how the boy’s life was saved twice by this very same dad ? once when he was stolen from his baby basket by a dog and once when he flew out the car window. But as his mother says, his dad has ants in his pants, which means he’s often not around.

Still, life rolls along with one fantastical tale after another, in good times and bad. And this is this extraordinary father’s gift to his child ? the life of the imagination ? which is always with him, even when his father is not.

The illustrations have a nostalgic, underground graphic-novel style feel to them that perfectly complements the very original text.